My friend is too cool for me!

Dear Advice Girl,

I've been friends with this girl for 8 years. But now she's going to a new school where, if you don't dress well and act preppy, you’re not "cool." She totally changed her image, and now she insults my style and tells me I need to dress better.

It's painful hearing this stuff from a girl who understood me and helped me out throughout the years. What should I do?

Signed,
   Kat

Dear Kat,

This is a gross but common side effect of losing your friend to a new school. She wants to be popular, and having non-preppy friends like you makes her feel insecure that she’s not all that. (You’d think 8 years of friendship would be worth more than that, but whatever.)

It’ll be hard to snap her out of it, but it’s worth a shot. When she insults you, remind her that you’ve always been the same person she knows and loves, and that the type of clothes you wear shouldn’t affect your friendship. And let her know that it’s one thing to offer someone fashion tips and quite another to be a jerk about it.

If she doesn’t shape up, she must be full-on brainwashed by her new friends. And you don’t deserve to put up with that. Give her some space and go out with your real friends.