110 Powerful Quotes To Let Go Of Toxic Friendships

Last Updated on August 14, 2023

We all have friends who have been a part of our lives for years, if not decades. They’ve been there through thick and thin, through breakups and promotions, and have shared countless memories with us. 

But what happens when those friends turn toxic? When they start bringing us down, putting us in uncomfortable situations, or just generally making us feel bad about ourselves?

It’s a tough question to grapple with, but one that many of us have faced at some point in our lives.

That’s where the power of quotes comes in. 

Quotes about cutting off toxic friends can provide the insight and guidance we need to make difficult decisions about who we allow in our lives. 

They can offer a perspective that we may not have considered before and remind us that we’re not alone in our struggles.

Perhaps you’ve been feeling like you need to distance yourself from a friend who’s always putting you down. 

Maybe you’re tired of feeling like you’re constantly walking on eggshells around them. 

Or, it could be that you’ve realized that your friend’s values and beliefs are no longer aligned with your own. 

Whatever the reason, cutting off toxic friends is never easy. But, reading quotes about the topic can help us feel more empowered and confident in our decision to do so.

These quotes can offer practical advice on how to identify toxic friendships and how to move on from them in a healthy way. 

They can also serve as a source of inspiration and motivation, reminding us that we deserve to be surrounded by people who uplift us, support us, and bring out the best in us.

At the end of the day, the decision to cut off toxic friends is a deeply personal one. 

But, by engaging with quotes about the topic, we can gain a new perspective and find the strength and courage to make the difficult but necessary decision to let go of those relationships that are no longer serving us.

Cutting People Off Quotes For Mental Health

1. “You cannot expect to live a positive life if you hang with negative people.” — Joel Osteen

2. “I did the same and I can’t explain how happy I am now. There comes a time when you have no choice but to cut off in order to respect yourself and live in harmony.” — Sandra Barbir

3. “Don’t let negative and toxic people rent space in your head. Raise the rent and kick them out.” — Robert Tew

4. “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” — Mark Twain

5. “People inspire you or they drain you. Pick them wisely.” — Hans F. Hansen

6. “Learning to walk away is hard but staying to suffer is harder.” — Mariel Avila

7. “As you remove toxic people from your life, you free up space and emotional energy for positive, healthy relationships.” — John Mark Green

8. “Learning to ignore certain people is one of the greatest paths to inner peace. Life gets easier when you delete those who make it difficult.” — Unknown

9. “We would do ourselves a tremendous favor by letting go of the people who poison our spirit.” — Steve Maraboli

10. “Walking away from the false is the same as heading toward what is true.” — Guy Finley

11. “Some people take your energy and put you in a negative place. Sometimes you just have to walk away if this is a regular occurrence.” — Rachael Malloy

12. “Sometimes we just have to cut off the dead branches in our life. Sometimes that’s the only way we can keep the tree alive. It’s hard and it hurts, but it’s what’s best.” — Nicole Williams

13. “Look around you at the people you spend the most time with and realize that your life can’t rise any higher than your friendships.” — Mandy Hale

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14. “If you walked away from a toxic, negative, abusive, one-sided, dead-end low vibrational relationship or friendship — you won.” — Lalah Delia

15. “Letting go means to come to the realization that some people are a part of your history, but not a part of your destiny.” — Steve Maraboli

16. “Toxic people attach themselves like cinder blocks tied to your ankles, and then invite you for a swim in their poisoned waters.” — John Mark Green

17. “It always amazes me, how swiftly problems can be solved, once you start cutting things off people.” — Joe Abercrombie

18. “The path to freedom is illuminated by the bridges you have burned, adorned by the ties you have cut, and cleared by the drama you have left behind. Let go. Be free.” — Steve Maraboli

19. “Avoid negative people, for they are the greatest destroyers of self confidence and self-esteem. Surround yourself with people who bring out the best in you!” — Auliq Ice

Cutting People Off Quotes To Help Let Go Off Negativity

20. “Every day you must unlearn the ways that hold you back. You must rid yourself of negativity, so you can learn to fly.” — Leon Brown

21. “You create more space in your life when you turn your excess baggage to garbage.” ― Chinonye J. Chidolue

22. “Beware of those around you who subtly sow the seeds of doubt.” ― Wayne Gerard Trotman

23. “Like arsenic, toxic people will slowly kill you. They kill your positive spirit and play with your mind and emotions. The only cure is to let them go.” — Denisse Lisseth

24. “Nothing is wrong if you walk alone.” — Lailah Gifty Akita

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25. “Losing will not always amount to a loss, sometimes you have to lose those toxic relationships and bad habits to create a space for better things.” — Gift Gugu Mona

26. “You are in control of your life. Set new boundaries by removing all of the toxic people from your inner circle.” — Germany Kent

27. “Be ready to walk away. Remember, you only want this deal, you do not need this deal.” — Jim Camp

28. “While you can’t control someone’s negative behavior, you can control how long you participate in it.” — Unknown

29. “In order to reach your highest potential, it is imperative that you remove all negative people from your life.” — Germany Kent

30. “There comes a time in your life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh. Forget the bad and focus on the good. Love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who do not. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living.” — José N. Harris

31. “Don’t ever let someone tell you the value you don’t have, in order to be in someone’s life. That is often the value they feel you have, not that person.” — Shannon L. Alder

32. “Life is too short for unreality and you don’t owe anybody anything – especially your time, energy, and attention.” — Oli Anderson

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33. “Toxic people will pollute everything around them. Don’t hesitate. Fumigate.” — Mandy Hale

34. “Life is short. Don’t waste it with negative people who don’t appreciate you. Keep them in your heart but keep them out of your life.” — Unknown

35. “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm, Let go of the friends who are no longer uplifting you. Spend time with people who inspire you to be better.” — Proverbs 13:20

36. “Anyone or anything that is negative, you should walk away from. Make room for all the positives.” — Wendy John

37. “The minute she rid herself from toxic people. She started glowing like a beautiful sunset in Barbados.” — Charmaine J. Forde

38. “There are people who break you down by just being them. They need not do anything. Dissociate.” — Malebo Sephodi

39. “Letting go of toxic people in your life is a big step in loving yourself.” — Hussein Nishah

Toxic People Quotes To Stay Away From Negativity

40. “Cutting people out of your life doesn’t mean you hate them, it simply means you respect yourself. Not everyone is meant to stay.” – Anonymous

41. “It’s rare for a toxic person to change their behavior. More often, the only thing that varies is their target and the blame they place. Because some toxic people are difficult to identify, keep in mind that a victim mindset is sometimes a red flag. So, listen when someone talks about their life and circumstances. If the list of people they blame is long… it’s probably only a matter of time before you’re on that list.” – Steve Maraboli

42. “Toxic people attach themselves like cinder blocks tied to your ankles, and then invite you for a swim in their poisoned waters.” – John Mark Green

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43. “If you walked away from a toxic, negative, abusive, one-sided, dead-end low vibrational relationship or friendship — you won.” – Lalah Delia

44. “People inspire you, or they drain you. Pick them wisely.” – Hans F. Hasen

45. “When you notice someone does something toxic the first time, don’t wait for the second time before you address it.” – Shahida Arabi

46. “People appear like angels until you hear them speak. You must not rush to judge people by the color of their cloaks, but by the content of their words!” – Israelmore Ayivo

47. “As important as it is to learn how to deal with different kinds of people, truly toxic people will never be worth your time and energy – and they take a lot of each. Toxic people create unnecessary complexity, strife, and, worst of all, stress.” – Travis Bradberry

48. “If a person finds negative people in his life, then he needs to mend his own nature than that of others, for his own basic grounding decides the level of acidic or toxicity surrounding him.” – Anuj Somany

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49. “Every day you must unlearn the ways that hold you back. You must rid yourself of negativity, so you can learn to fly.” – Leon Brown

50. “I found peace of mind when I walked away from small fights not worth fighting. I stopped fighting for people who gossiped about me. I stopped fighting for those who didn’t respect me. I quit worrying about those who wouldn’t value me for being me.” – Dana Arcuri

51. “When people pressure you to engage in negative decisions and actions, look at them boldly in the eyes and dare them to do good.” – Edmond Mbiaka

52. “Don’t let toxic people infect you with the fear of giving and receiving one of the most powerful forces in this world… LOVE!” – Yvonne Pierre

53. “Toxic people will pollute everything around them. Don’t hesitate. Fumigate.” – Mandy Hale

54. “Keeping bad company is like being in a germ-infested area. You never know what you’ll catch.” – Frank Sonnenberg

55. “An entire sea of water can’t sink a ship unless it gets inside the ship. Similarly, the negativity of the world can’t put you down unless you allow it to get inside you.” – Goi Nasu

56. “Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.” – Deborah Reber

57. “We don’t get to choose our family, but we can choose our friends. With courage, we can weed out narcissistic people. We can focus on those who do appreciate us, love us, and treat us with respect.” – Dana Arcuri

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58. “Don’t let people get the best of you they can say what they want but don’t let that distract you from achieving your goals.” – Alcurtis Turner

59. “Until you let go of all the toxic people in your life you will never be able to grow into your fullest potential. Let them go so you can grow.” – DLQ

60. “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too can become great.” – Mark Twain

61. “If you attach to the negative behavior of others it brings you down to their level.” – Guru Singh

62. “My encouragement: delete the energy vampires from your life, clean out all complexity, build a team around you that frees you to fly, remove anything toxic, and cherish simplicity. Because that’s where genius lives.” – Robin S. Sharma

63. “Losing will not always amount to a loss, sometimes you have to lose those toxic relationships and bad habits to create a space for better things.” – Gift Gugu Mona

64. “You will find that it is necessary to let things go; simply for the reason that they are heavy. So let them go, let go of them. I tie no weights to my ankles.” – C. JoyBell C.

65. “Don’t waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

66. “You lift your spirits by moving away from what upsets you. If the stove is hot, you can’t ask how to touch it but be happy about it.” – Queen Tourmaline

67. “The less you respond to negative people, the more powerful your life will become.” – Robert E. Baine, Jr.

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68. “Like arsenic, toxic people will slowly kill you. They kill your positive spirit and play with your mind and emotions. The only cure is to let them go.” – Denisse Lisseth

69. “You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.” – Anne Lamott

70. “Letting go means to come to the realization that some people are a part of your history, but not a part of your destiny.” – Steve Maraboli

71. “It’s one thing if a person owns up to their behavior and makes an effort to change. But if a person disregards your feelings, ignores your boundaries, and continues to treat you in a harmful way, they need to go.” – Daniell Koepke

72. “We all have those toxic people around us that make our lives miserable… The day we take them out from our lives, we will all become better people; including them…” – Rodolfo Peon

73. “Life is short. Don’t waste it with negative people who don’t appreciate you. Keep them in your heart but keep them out of your life.” – Anonymous

Quotes To Help You Know Whom To Trust

74. “People inspire you or they drain you. Pick them wisely.”  ― Hans F. Hansen

75. “Keeping bad company is like being in a germ-infested area. You never know what you’ll catch.” ― Frank Sonnenberg

76. “It took me way too long to realize that you shouldn’t stay friends with people who never ask how you’re doing.” ― Drew Monson

77. “It’s very possible and very okay to forgive someone and still not want to spend time with them” ― Karen Salmansohn

78. “Toxic people attach themselves like cinder blocks tied to your ankles, and then invite you for a swim in their poisoned waters.” ― John Mark Green

79. “If someone keeps bringing you down, perhaps it’s time to get up and leave.” ― Karen Salmansohn

80. “True friendship isn’t about being there when it’s convenient; it’s about being there when it’s not.” – Unknown

81. “Be careful who you share your weaknesses with. Some people can’t wait for the opportunity to use them against you.” – Anonymous

82. “People may not always tell you how they feel about you, but they will always show you. Pay attention.” ― Keri Hilson

83. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” ― Steve Jobs

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84. “A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.” ― William Shakespeare

85. “Save your skin from the corrosive acids from the mouths of toxic people. Someone who just helped you to speak evil about another person can later help another person to speak evil about you.” ― Israelmore Ayivor

86. “Such a disappointment when you defend someone for so long thinking they are different and they turn out to be just like what everyone said.” – Anonymous

87. “If you walked away from a toxic, negative, abusive, one-sided, dead-end, low vibrational, relationship or friendship — you won.” ― Lalah Delia

88. “There’s folks you just don’t need. You’re better off without em. Your life is just a little better because they ain’t in it.” ― William Gay

89. “Friends are supposed to be there for you when you cry not the reason you cry.” – Unknown

90. “The only people who are mad at you for speaking the truth are those people who are living a lie. Keep speaking the truth.” – Unknown 

91. “God will always bring the right people into your life, but you have to let the wrong people walk away.” – Joel Osteen

92. “I no longer have the energy for meaningless friendships, forced interactions or unnecessary conversations.” ― Joquesse Eugenia

93. “Not everyone will appreciate what you do for them. You have to figure out who’s worth your kindness and who’s just taking advantage.” – Anonymous

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94. “Handling toxic people is not an art, they will be the victim of their own toxicity.” ― P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar

95. “A bad relationship is like standing on broken glass, if you stay you will keep hurting. If you walk away, you will hurt but eventually you will heal.” ― Autumn Kohler

96. “I trusted you and you betrayed me.” – Unknown

97. “Making new friends shouldn’t mean losing old ones.” – Anonymous

98. “If someone thinks you’re being dramatic or selfish, then they obviously haven’t walked a mile in your shoes. It’s not important for you to explain yourself.” ― Sarah Newman

99. “Some people are in such utter darkness that they will burn you just to see a light.” ― Kamand Kojouri

More Cutting Ties Quotes

100. “It’s okay to cut ties with toxic friends and family you’ve got to prioritize your own well-being.” — Brenden Dilley

101. “Trust yourself and walk away from situations and people that don’t have your best interest at heart.” — Ben Ruston

102. “Every woman that finally figured out her worth, has picked up her suitcases of pride and boarded a flight to freedom, which landed in the valley of incredible change.” ― Shannon L. Alder

103. “Be certain to limit your exposure to negative people and environments.” — Asa Don Brown

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104. “You will find that it is necessary to let things go; simply for the reason that they are heavy. So let them go, let go of them. I tie no weights to my ankles.” — C. JoyBell C.

105. “When dealing with toxic people always choose distance over disrespect.” — Germany Kent

106. “If you’ve been through trauma you don’t need more drama, so surround yourself with those who bring you peace.” — Christy Ann Martine

107. “Once you realize you deserve a bright future, letting go of your dark past is the best choice you will ever make.” ― Roy T. Bennett

108. “Removing toxic people (including Naysayers) from your life can repay you in scores of holistic wealth.” — Keisha Blair

109. “I’ve had to cut people that I love out of my life or distance myself from ‘friends’ not because I don’t love them but because they were causing unnecessary stress in my life. It’s worked so far, I’m happy me again.” — Nadine Barnes

110. “Weeding out the harmful influences should become the norm not the exception.” — Carlos Wallace

How can reading these quotes be beneficial?

Reading quotes about letting go of toxic friendships can be beneficial in several ways. 

Here are some of the ways in which quotes about cutting off toxic friends can help:

1. Offering Perspective: Reading quotes about toxic friendships can help us gain a new perspective on our situation. They can help us recognize when a friendship is unhealthy, and provide us with the courage to walk away from it. Sometimes, when we’re in the midst of a toxic friendship, it can be hard to see the situation objectively. Quotes can provide a fresh and unbiased perspective that helps us to make the best decision for ourselves.
2. Empowerment: Letting go of toxic friends is never easy. We may feel guilty, sad, or even angry. But reading quotes about the topic can help us feel more empowered in our decision to move on. They remind us that we deserve to be treated with respect, kindness, and empathy, and that it’s okay to prioritize our own well-being.
3. Validation: Sometimes, it can be hard to accept that a friendship is toxic. We may doubt ourselves or wonder if we’re overreacting. But reading quotes about letting go of toxic friendships can validate our feelings and experiences. It can help us recognize that our feelings are valid and that we’re not alone in our struggles.
4. Inspiration: Quotes about cutting off toxic friends can also serve as a source of inspiration and motivation. They can inspire us to take action, to prioritize our well-being, and to seek out relationships that are healthy and fulfilling. They can also remind us that there is hope for a better future and that we have the power to create the life we want.

Next Steps

Implementing quotes about cutting off toxic friends into daily life can be a powerful tool for personal growth and healing. 

Here are some ways to incorporate quotes about letting go of toxic friendships into your daily routine:

1. Read and Reflect: Take time each day to read a quote about cutting off toxic friends and reflect on its meaning. You can write the quote down in a journal or on a post-it note and keep it with you throughout the day as a reminder of your intention to let go of toxic relationships.
2. Repeat Positive Affirmations: Incorporate positive affirmations into your daily routine that reinforce the idea that you deserve healthy, positive relationships. For example, “I am worthy of healthy, positive relationships” or “I am strong enough to let go of toxic friendships.” Repeating these affirmations to yourself throughout the day can help build your confidence and reinforce your decision to let go of toxic friends.
3. Find Supportive Communities: Seek out supportive communities that share your values and beliefs. Join groups, clubs, or organizations that align with your interests or passions, and connect with people who share your vision for a healthy, positive future. This can help you build new friendships and establish a supportive network that encourages growth and healing.
4. Practice Self-Care: Letting go of toxic friendships can be emotionally challenging. Practice self-care activities such as exercise, meditation, or spending time in nature to help reduce stress and promote emotional well-being. Additionally, engaging in hobbies or activities that bring you joy can help distract you from negative thoughts and emotions.
5. Seek Professional Support: If you’re struggling to let go of toxic friendships or are experiencing significant emotional distress, consider seeking professional support. A therapist or counselor can provide guidance, support, and tools to help you navigate this process in a healthy way.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can reading quotes about cutting off toxic friends help me feel less guilty about ending a friendship?

Reading quotes about cutting off toxic friends can help you feel less guilty about ending a friendship by reminding you that you have the right to prioritize your own well-being. 

Toxic friendships can be emotionally draining, and it’s important to recognize when a relationship is no longer serving your best interests. 

Quotes can help you feel more empowered in your decision to let go of toxic friends and remind you that you deserve to be treated with respect and kindness.

Can reading quotes about cutting off toxic friends help me identify if a friendship is toxic?

Yes, reading quotes about cutting off toxic friends can help you identify if a friendship is toxic. 

Quotes often provide insights into what a healthy relationship looks like, and what behaviors or actions are considered toxic or unhealthy. 

By reading these quotes, you can gain a better understanding of what a healthy friendship looks like, and recognize when a friendship is no longer serving your best interests.

How can I use quotes about cutting off toxic friends to help a friend who is struggling with a toxic friendship?

If you have a friend who is struggling with a toxic friendship, you can use quotes about cutting off toxic friends to offer support and encouragement. 

Share these quotes with your friend and discuss how they relate to their situation. 

Use the quotes to help your friend recognize that they deserve to be treated with respect and kindness, and to help them feel more empowered in their decision to let go of toxic relationships. 

Additionally, remind your friend that they are not alone, and offer to help them find resources or support to help them navigate this difficult process.

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