I totally identify! I find I'm playing therapist to multiple people because I am a good listener. People who are needy thrive on good listeners. I've been trying to wean myself from this behavior. My initial reaction was to drop all of these kinds of friendships. My therapist gave me a good tool which seems to be working. It is a form of setting boundaries, which seems to be a theme here. Whenever someone tries to go down the "poor me, please listen" route, I change the topic of the conversation and ask them about something other in there lives that is positive. For instance "how did you get into the field you are in? You seem to love it" or "have you always been interested in what you are doing (hobby, job, marriage, etc.)?" These people like to talk so much about themselves that I am finding they aren't even aware that I changed to topic. Once they are launched on a positive conversational path, it is much easier for me to say "whoops! gotta go, I have an appointment" or some such excuse. This is a method to extricate yourself from the conversation in a positive manner.