Like everything else in life, being single has its pros and cons. Some people love living the single life, while others are a lot more comfortable in a committed relationship. Learning to be content on your own is important, but that doesn’t mean it’s always easy. If you struggle with being on your own, here’s what you need to remember:
- You aren’t really alone. Just because you aren’t in a long-term romantic relationship at the moment doesn’t mean you’re utterly alone. You still have friends, family, co-workers and the casual acquaintances you see on a regular basis, like your regular yoga teacher and favorite barista. Feeling lonely because you lack that deeper connection with someone is normal, but don’t forget about all the other people around you who care about you because they matter too.
- Being alone is better than being with the wrong person. You likely have a few people in your life that are in relationships, but all they do is complain about their significant other. That’s probably because they shouldn’t be together. Would you rather be the single girl or the girl everyone thinks is in a miserable relationship?
- It won’t always be this way. It might be hard to believe you’ll ever find someone you want to be with, especially when you’re going on date after date with socially awkward guys who will probably just try to sleep with you and ghost immediately afterward anyway. Believe it or not, there are nice guys out there and you WILL find one. It’s just a matter of time.
- Try to savor all that time to yourself. Once you’re in a relationship, you’ll have a lot less time to do whatever you want, wherever you want, for as long as you want. You might as well enjoy your freedom now because before you know it, your weekends will be full and you’ll wish you had a Saturday to just window shop and read a book in the park instead of being dragged to another comic book convention.
- There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Do you hate being alone because you’re worried people are wondering why you can’t seem to find anyone to date? There are plenty of people who are single by choice these days, and there’s no reason to be ashamed of it. Other people’s opinions of your relationship status don’t matter whatsoever, so quit obsessing about it.
- Even happily single girls have those moments. You’ve probably heard plenty of advice about appreciating your time alone and reasons why being single isn’t that bad. But even girls who genuinely love being single have those moments where they wonder if they’ll ever find love, so there’s nothing wrong with feeling discouraged sometimes. It happens to the best of us.
- You’ll be an awesome girlfriend when the time comes. Spending time on your own gives you the chance to figure out who you are and what you’re looking for in a relationship. You’ll also be a lot less likely to take a great guy for granted because you know they can be hard to come by. That means when the time comes for you to be a girlfriend again, you won’t mess it up.
- Independence is something to be proud of. Being able to do things on your own, no matter how big or small, is never a bad thing. Be proud that you’re perfectly fine on your own and grateful you aren’t in a relationship just because it’s too hard to be alone.
- A relationship doesn’t automatically mean you’re happy. There are plenty of people in committed relationships that are absolutely miserable, either because they’re with the wrong person or they just never figured out what it was they needed to be happy in the first place. Being in love doesn’t automatically mean you’re blissfully happy.
- Take your time figuring out what you want. There’s no rush to find love, so don’t even think about settling for something that isn’t exactly what you’re looking for. Casual dating is a good way to figure out what you don’t want, so take advantage of your freedom and put yourself out there a little more. Remember that not every bad date is a failure, so try not to take it personally.
