Yes, yes. Women empowerment, self-love, independent living, and all that. I believe all of that. I do. When I was living the single life, I gladly accepted all of these principles. Naturally, I wanted to make the most out of my situation. Sure, I wasn’t in a relationship. But that didn’t mean that I had to be relegated to a life of sadness and depression. Just because I was alone doesn’t say that I was lonely. Nope. However, I would also be lying if some aspects of being single didn’t suck.
Of course, when you’re single, you are only made more aware of it whenever you see your friends in happy romantic relationships of their own. Again, being alone doesn’t mean that you have to be lonely. But I knew there were a lot of parts about being single that I didn’t like and was unhappy with. Here are a few of the things that I hated the most about being single:
1. I didn’t have a go-to person to talk to.
Whenever I had exciting news to share, I didn’t have anyone to share it with. Sure, I had a lot of close friends. But I also knew that they had their things that were going on in their own lives. When you’re in a romantic relationship with someone, you have the luxury of going to them about absolutely anything anytime.
2. I always had to wonder what other people thought of me.
Naturally, when you’re the only single person in a group of people who are in relationships, you are the odd one out. And as always, I found myself wondering about what other people thought of me. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t know about how they perceived me and my life.
3. I had friends who wanted to set me up all the time.
Don’t get me wrong! I loved my friends. They had my back, and they only wanted what was best for me. However, they also didn’t realize that being set up by them was kind of condescending and demeaning. I knew that they meant well, but it didn’t always feel good to be set up with other people.
4. I was always the third wheel.
Being the third wheel wasn’t that big of an issue for me. However, when you do it often enough, you can often feel just how awkward it is. Sometimes, you get this sense that the couple that you’re with want to have their intimacy and privacy. In those moments, it can arrive awkwardly.
5. I dealt with so many false assumptions about my lifestyle.
Not a lot of people understood my lifestyle. And I had to correct so many false assumptions and perceptions about the single life. It was very tiring.
6. I had too much time alone.
Alone time is great. I firmly believe that everyone should always make time for themselves. However, there is also such a thing as having too much of a good thing. And when you spend too much of your time on your own, the novelty can wear off quickly. It’s not as rewarding when you do it too often.
7. I felt awkward about going on dates.
I always felt so awkward about going out on dates. Dating isn’t just something that you can dive into seamlessly and without a fuss. This is especially true if you’ve been single for the longest time. It’s not always going to be a comfortable experience to go through.
8. I wasn’t anyone’s go-to person either.
In connection to an earlier item on this list, I was never really anyone’s go-to person. Sure, it’s great when you have someone who you can go to whenever you have important news immediately. But it’s also great to know that you are someone’s go-to as well. It makes you feel needed and included.
9. I lost some friendships.
But not in the way that you think. Of course, the friends that I had before are still my friends now, for the most part. However, it’s always different when you have a single friend who gets into a relationship. They won’t be as available to you as they once were. And it’s unfortunate when that happens because it’s a significant adjustment in your friendship.
10. I had to always reason out as to why I was single.
Again, it’s just a lot more difficult when everyone around you is seemingly crazy in love in their fantastical relationships. I was just always on my own. Consequentially, a lot of people kept on asking me as to why that was the case. And even though I took pride in my situation, it was getting tiring to have to explain myself to everyone all the time.
