My friend visit ended last Friday. It was nice to see her as well as additional old friends that came to a reunion we organized at home as she came to town. Somehow, her visit overwhelmed me a bit, due to my depression and also because she is too helpful sometimes. I have adopted some habits from the US ( like caring more about my privacy and autonomy) and that sometimes can be a barrier for relatioships molded in my country where community ties are more important than individual assertiveness. I did not tell her a lot about my feelings but kindly refused her help a couple of times, thanking her but stating i would like to do it my self. For her, as i am disabled, i should have passed some chores onto her. I do not mind to get help but i should be in charge as it is my home, i am the host and she is the visitor. This is a principle of independent living i learned in the US and i want to keep. I believe she got the message but then i felt bad for her, i do not want to hurt her as she is a good person. She will come back with her son shortly. I believe she is being overwhelming towards her son, as well. She has told me she is very concerned about him and their relationship. She wants me to take a look to a psychological report of her son as i am an educational psychologist ( i have not practiced since 2001, when i left my country to go to the US. A year ago I came back to my country, although did not go back to my practice) I do not mind to look at the report and translate it into plain language. But perhaps this is an opprtunity to tell her she is overwhelming towards her son. I should not worry about this, but i cannot help about it. I get somehow anxious when i think how to better tell her what i think. She is my friend and deserves my honest imput, even if it is a bit painful first.