I always had someone to vent to, but it would usually be female. (I am very much hetero.) Sometimes male. When it was male, these were not people I was attracted to, so someone’s comment above that it’s not fair to a real spouse is not applicable in most work, spouse or work friend cases.

I absolutely needed someone at each job because I was an entrepreneur at heart and it was hard for me to work at companies. I always had something going on the side in an attempt to be my own boss.

I finally figured it out and with my CPA and CFP became a financial planner who works from home and has a small group of clients . But until I got there, it was very hard for me to work for a company and these work spouses and work friends were very important in helping me get through those years.

That said, it can be a little dangerous to take someone in confidence and bitch about things that can get you in trouble if someone finds out. But luckily, that never happened to me. I believe everyone stayed loyal.