TL;DR friends negativity is taking a toll on me, not sure how to end or continue the friendship
I have been friends with Lucy since we both studied our masters degree. She’s always been a bit negative and has a sarcastic/in your face kind of sense of humour. As the years went on, she has started to get more negative, the way she speaks about her husband, always complaining about her in-laws (yet doing nothing about it). After she became a mum, she was just always negative about everything, to the point that it was no longer easy to talk to her without getting emotionally drained. Now we are both mums and I no longer have the emotional bandwidth to deal with it. I’ve tried to talk to her about it, suggested she get support, go to couples counselling, asked point blank why she’s still married if she is that unhappy (she kinda changed her tune a little after that). I’ve actually started to distance myself because I can’t take it anymore. What may start out as a normal, simple conversation always ends up with her complaining and sucking the fun and goodness out of everything. I also find the way she speaks about her child uncomfortable. I am not sure I want to continue with this friendship anymore, but I feel bad and guilty about this. I don’t know how to approach it as I know she’s isolated as is, but I also need to protect my own mental health. She hasn’t actually done anything to me, which is what makes this decision hard. What suggestions do you have?