# Friends & Following

Your social connections on the platform fall into two categories: **Friends** (mutual, two-way connections) and **Following** (one-way subscriptions to another member's activity).

## Sending a Friend Request

1. Visit the member's profile.
2. Click the **Add Friend** button.
3. The member receives a notification and can accept or decline.

Once accepted, both of you appear on each other's friends list. You can view your friends list from **Profile > Friends**.

## Following

Following is a one-way action. When you follow someone, their public posts and activity appear in your feed. They receive a notification that you followed them, but they do not need to follow you back.

- Click the **Follow** button on any member's profile.
- Manage the list of people you follow from **Profile > Following**.
- View who follows you from **Profile > Followers**.

## Blocking

Blocking a member removes all social connections between you and prevents future interactions.

When you block someone:

- They are removed from your friends and followers lists.
- They cannot view your profile, send you messages, or interact with your posts.
- You will no longer see their content in your feed or search results.

To block a member, visit their profile and select **Block** from the actions menu (three-dot icon).

## Muting

Muting is a softer alternative to blocking. A muted member can still interact with you normally, but:

- Their posts are hidden from your feed.
- You do not receive notifications for their activity.
- They are not informed that you muted them.

To mute someone, click the three-dot menu on their profile and select **Mute**.

## Managing Connections

From **Profile > Friends** you can:

- Search your friends list by username.
- Remove a friend (this is silent — they are not notified).
- View mutual friends when browsing another member's profile.

From **Settings > Privacy** you can control:

- Who can send you friend requests (Everyone, Friends of Friends, Nobody).
- Whether your friends list is visible to other members.