4 Reasons You Should Spend More Time Alone
Though it may sound counterintuitive to the flow of society, spending time alone is actually essential to our happiness and well-being. Unfortunately, most of us just don’t get enough of it, and it can leave us feeling worn down. It can be as simple as enjoying an episode of your favorite television show, unplugging from your electronic devices, reading a book, or just closing your office door for a few minutes of peace and quiet. But no matter how you do it, taking some time to focus on yourself provides a great number of benefits.
- It makes you happier and healthier. Not allowing yourself alone time will leave you feeling drained and even short-tempered. This is because we naturally tend to build up a lot of stress and anxiety in our daily lives, and if we don’t make the time to unwind and relax, we are bound to become tired and easier to anger. This also leads us to make poor choices for our health, such as foregoing healthy, home-cooked meals to rely on quick and easy fast food instead.
- It enhances relationships. Long days spent caring for your family and catering to the demands of your job can leave you feeling resentful of both. Studies have even shown that parents may only get as little as 32 minutes of free time in a typical day. However, if you make “me time” a priority by scheduling it in, you’ll not only be more responsive to your family, but also more fun.
Plus, if you don’t build alone time into your schedule, you’re more apt to break plans at the last minute because you’ve finally reached your limit. This, of course, is likely to distance you from your friends and relatives, and leave you feeling isolated. But when alone time is a priority, we appreciate those around us even more.
- It helps you think more clearly. If you don’t get enough time to yourself, it is a lot easier to become overwhelmed or forgetful, even when it comes to easy, everyday tasks. When we take a little downtime alone to check in with ourselves, however, we give our brains the opportunity to reboot, slow down, and put things into perspective.
Once we are clear-headed, our concentration improves and we are able to make decisions and solve problems more easily, become more productive, and feel inspired once again.
- It allows you to connect with yourself and your needs. When we take the time to sit alone with our thoughts, we find ourselves gravitating toward the things that are most important to us. Taking this time will help you follow your own path in life, rather than compare yourself to the barrage of others’ accomplishments on social media, and even face-to-face.
Alone time helps you reconnect with and cultivate your own hobbies and interests, express your identity, and discover the things that truly bring you happiness and joy.
The rejuvenating benefits of spending time alone are undeniable. It’s a relaxing activity that results in a positive impact on all aspects of our lives, from our health, to our relationships, and especially our happiness. Taking the time to focus on yourself will help you to be a better friend, parent, employee, and overall, a better person.
Ready to make the most of your alone time? Try a relaxing soak in your own cozy hot tub.