Thank you for your question. No, the friends can always send you live.
It depends on whether they are playing at the time you are playing.
Otherwise you have it inside if you go to life symbol - the heart.
I used to get so many lives from friends, I never had to stop playing, up until about 2 weeks ago. Now I don't get lives, nor request for lives. I think they want you to buy them. Either way, I am glad because the less I play, the less money I spend.