Should you pay for a friend?

Should a paid companion be considered a friend?

One of my family members feels that fraternities and sororities are paying for friends instead of making them organically. Yet, people maintain life long friendships with fraternity and sorority brothers and sisters long after they have left college life behind.

The same is true of a paid companion. While the relationship may have started as a financial arrangement, that doesn’t mean there isn’t affection, caring and mutual admiration as the relationship develops. Think of the people you pay that you have a relationship with: doctors, dentists, hairdressers or barbers, tellers, teachers, housekeepers, etc. All of these people came to you as someone paid to do a service for you, yet a deep, meaningful relationship has developed. You only need to look at the obituaries and see how many people thank caregivers and health professionals for their care and kindness that made a profound impact on someone’s life.

You and your family member should not think of a paid companion as someone simply who is forced to be nice because they are getting a salary. Rather, you need to look at it as the means to which you are matched with someone else who you expect to see you at a regular interval.

If the alternative of a paid companion is loneliness, that is a terrible choice. Loneliness causes physical decline and can accelerate death. If you find a compassionate, paid companion (like The Extra Daughter) you will never regret your decision