610212305er

I have a long-time friend who I met in high school. To attempt to make this bearably short, he went from a very sociable guy in high school and a few years after, to regressing into a recluse...He was very popular with the ladies, but now it seems like he's afraid to approach one? His personality has changed drastically...After high school, he became a little more 'street', which was ok, but now it's way too far. He swears he's in some gang(but yet he doesn't hang out with anyone?). That's not the major issue though...He had a decently-paying job working for the government, so he's reasonably intelligent...He lost that job due to tardiness. He was a huge pot smoker, and from what I gather, he occassionally stills smokes. Nothing terribly unusual there as I know alot of functional pot heads...I'm sorry if I'm thinking aloud a bit.

My friend, a time after high school, started slowly becoming, well, an a-hole. He'd do disrespectful things, sometimes seeming as if he was unaware that he was doing them..It progressed to the point where you KNEW he knew that he was being so offensive but at the same time I had my doubt, 'cause when I called him on it, he acted as if he didn't know what all the fuss was about...This kid was once very respectful though...Good social skills...Well, I eventually moved out of state, keeping in touch, but it became increasingly difficult to contact him because with his job loss, his phone went, internet access, etc...He moved back in with his parents...where he still is today at the age of 25...but that's nothing alarming, it's how he acts now that is...Unresponsive when spoken to much too often. Like his head is in the clouds...Weird incidents where, for example, he attacked a person he thought was someone else from his past, someone he thought was walking with his ex. He and his ex had a very long, tumultuous relationship. Abuse, mostly on his part....5 years together, HS sweethearts...it seemed as when they were done, when she finally left him, he got much worse...I once was walking with him, and we agreed that he'd accompany me somewhere, and he eventually went into the opposite direction, like he forgot where he was supposed to go...I ran after him and he said he was going home...we hit a street corner, not cars were coming, and he stopped there, waiting for the light. Never before did he care about it but now he wouldn't cross the empty street until the light changed, even at my encouragement. It was like he was lost in his mind again...I hear from his family that they agree he was being very disrespectful in ways I described, that they had had enough...His father is fed up, saying he just sits at home, sometimes in one spot for hours at a time...He was once sick, and an emergency room doctor recommended that he stay, not for his physical illness, but because he was concerned for his mental state...I talk to him about the future, and he either avoids the question(mindlessly or not, I don't know) or lies outright, being very vague..Same for women...he went from very interested to almost no interest at all...Could it be the drugs taking it's toll? The tough break up from his ex? Something else? A combination of many things? I don't know what to do anymore. I tried speaking to him, tried having all his HS buddies there to talk about what's bothering him and being supported, tried even confronting him last out of sheer frustration--and he acted like he genuinely did not know what I was talking about. I don't know what to do anymore. Anyone have any ideas what might be wrong, and what I can do to help? I tried speaking to his parents about it but they get defensive--and I know they have their drug habits too, so that doesn't help. He's done a complete 360 from high school.


Anything would be appreciate 'cause I have no clue as to what to do anymore. I've lost a really good friend, the funniest person I know and it bothers the hell out of me that I can't seem to help him....