As a sensitive girl with a bad habit of giving the wrong people too many chances, something clicked for me when I watched Netflix’s Sirens for the first time in summer 2025. The show presents itself as a dark comedy-drama, but I found a lot of truth in its portrayal of toxic relationships, especially for anyone navigating adulthood while learning to let people go. On a college campus this big, it is easy to fall into friendships and relationships that drain you. We like to think we have built a solid foundation of self-worth and social awareness growing up, but all that freedom away from home puts those lessons to the test. I hope my interpretation of this show serves as a reminder that you can be kind and still walk away.
Sirens centers on the complicated relationship between two sisters, Simone and Devon, who endure a difficult rough upbringing but take very different paths in adulthood. Devon lives a working-class life caring for their troubled, ill father, while Simone has distanced herself from her family to live in an isolated, high-society bubble with her wealthy boss Kiki. Simone idolizes Kiki for her luxury and power, adopting her mantra; “If it doesn’t serve you, let it go.” The philosophy reflects Simone’s life. She built an elite identity to escape her past, cutting ties with her family, including Devon, who never directly wronged her. Simone convinces herself that her sister no longer has a place in her life because she no longer “serves” her, overlooking the reality of complicated family bonds. Her choices raise difficult questions about loyalty and the cost of pursuing the life you want. Can we blame Simone for wanting more for herself? Is cutting off her sister a valid response to an abusive childhood? Does she have to isolate herself from the one person who shared her hardships to feel empowered?
Conflict arises when Devon arrives on the island unannounced, hoping to convince her estranged sister to return home and help care for their father. Instead, she discovers the troubling dynamic between Simone and Kiki and fears her sister has been brainwashed by the toxic wellness culture Kiki embodies. Simone, who has ignored Devon’s texts and pleas for help for years, resents her sister’s sudden arrival. Devon’s persistence, despite years of rejection, reflects a familiar tendency: giving someone too many chances because of the history you share. Her loyalty is understandable, but it also shows how difficult it can be to accept when a relationship has become one-sided. As Devon stays on the island and investigates Kiki’s seemingly perfect lifestyle, the sisters’ relationship becomes increasingly strained. In an ironic twist, Simone ultimately betrays Kiki, her closest source of stability, and marries into the family after deciding Kiki no longer “serves” her. She gets the life she always wanted, but at what cost?
The quote, “If it doesn’t serve you, let it go,” is a warning about people who hide behind self-care to abandon others as soon as a relationship becomes difficult. It reflects how therapy speak on social media has become an excuse to abandon people you normally wouldn’t. But I want to redefine it. Instead of asking, “What can you do for me?” we should ask, “Does this relationship respect me?” To me, the quote isn’t about dropping friends or family whenever they become inconvenient. It is about recognizing the difference between someone going through a difficult time and someone who repeatedly mistreats you. Ask yourself: Is this a pattern or a bad week? Do they ever take accountability? Loyalty means standing by people through difficult times, but it should never be at the expense of your dignity. This is where Simone goes wrong. She has every reason to distance herself from her father who contributed to a traumatic childhood, and I understand latching onto Kiki as a mother figure. But she allows her relationship with Devon to become collateral damage because cutting her sister off is easier than confronting the complicated history. Simone could have used Kiki’s mantra to empower herself while keeping her heart with the one person who understood and endured the same hardships with her.
The quote resonates with me. Like many people, I have been in and out of relationships throughout my life, and one thing remained consistent: I tend to keep people around longer than I should. Often, I only manage to cut toxic people out of my life after a major incident, even when the warning signs have been there all along. It has forced me to confront the difficult question: At what point does loyalty become self-betrayal? As I’ve worked on this flaw, I have sometimes worried that I was too hard on someone or made the wrong decision by cutting them off. I rarely make a clean break without second-guessing myself. The quote’s truth falters when you come to realize that cutoffs come in stages: a conversation, distance and letting go. Time may reveal whether you made the right decision, but protecting your heart and self-respect matters along the way. I may never get it completely right, but I am learning that I do not have to tolerate someone who constantly disrespects me. I’ve always struggled with putting myself first, and it’s hard to tell when that is healthy.
That uncertainty gets even louder in college. Away from home, surrounded by new people and desperate to belong, it can be tempting to overlook red flags. But a crowded campus doesn’t mean you owe everyone a seat in your life. Letting go doesn’t have to be dramatic. Sometimes it’s a quiet step back, a conversation you have been putting off or a text you decided not to answer. Walking away without gossip or retaliation is the best way to display both maturity and kindness.
I strive to be someone who doesn’t bail at the first sign of difficulty, so that when I finally let go, I know I’ve given the relationship a fair chance and protected both my heart and dignity. Despite its harsh context in the Sirens, I find some truth to Kiki’s mantra.