Being close to someone doesn’t mean they get a copy of every thought. Even best friends have a few closed tabs.

Intimacy is often confused with total disclosure, as though holding anything back were a small betrayal. It is not. Some thoughts are unfinished, some belong to other people, and some would only move a weight from you onto someone who can do nothing with it. Keeping an interior life is compatible with being completely honest.

If you are about to share something out of obligation rather than need, pause and check which one it is. Ask whether saying it helps you, helps them, or just relieves pressure. Privacy chosen on purpose is different from hiding, and you usually know which one you are doing.