How do you respond to a chronically ill and complicated friend on facebook who posts about illness updates?

[sugar1973]

And then they get upset with you if you don't read about their updates? I don't like using FB that much, but I don't deactivate for other reasons, such as contacting relatives on there, etc. I have a friend who has a chronic illness (has MS and a benign brain tumor), she gets upset when I don't know up to date details of her life. I have my own pressures with family yet I do want to be an emotional support to her when I can. She has so many other friends who support her, but I feel targeted when she does see me--I don't give her feedback with what she does on the internet. Should I feel guilty for limiting what I read from her on the internet? To add, our friendship became complicated when she started flirting with me--I think she was sexually confused or wanting to "experiment" with me as her female friend. That further distanced me from her, but I wanted to stay friends to support her emotionally with her illness. I see her in person only occasionally and I don't email her because of her behavior.

[AJS]

Welcome to the world of medical delemas vs. Emotional vampirisum.

Just drift away peacfully. Her life and drama is not the only one that matters in the world. Take care of you and yours.

She has no right to add guilt to anyone no matter her situation. She is wrong but doesn't need to be called on it. Just step out gracefully because others will take your place at her side.

[Get In Line]

I don't respond. If I'm not a good enough friend to hear if from them personally, I don't worry about how they'll react to my non-response to their "updates" on a generic social networking site where I'm lumped in with 100 other people they probably haven't seen in 10 years.

[Villager]

I can understand not wanting to read Facebook everyday, and no, you don't have to apologize for that. But on days when you know you'll be seeing her, it wouldn't hurt to look over her page.