Being single gives you the space to think "Just having a sense of freedom, being able to really focus and hone in on what I want and who I want to be," she said. Taking some time to yourself should be seen as an opportunity to get to know who you really are and what you need.
Being single comes with some surprising benefits that are often overlooked. It can give you greater freedom and control over your life. You can learn to be more independent and give yourself a chance to grow in all aspects of your life.
“One of the major benefits of being single is having the space in your life to spend quality time with friends,” says Roxy Zarrabi, Psy. D., a clinical psychologist. And being single actually increases social connections, according to a study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.
Single people may develop more individually and benefit more from alone time. Several studies have linked solitude to benefits such as an increased sense of freedom and higher levels of creativity and intimacy. Amy Morin, a psychotherapist, says that alone time can help people be more productive as well.
Some people also choose to be single their whole lives: A 2017 Pew report found one in seven never-married adults don't want to get married ever, and 27% say they're not sure if they want to get married. These and various other recent studies suggest the single population in America is actually growing.
A 2014 Pew Report estimated that by the time today's young adults reach the age of about 50, about 25% will have been single all their lives. Of course, some could still marry after the age of 50, but those numbers are likely to be small.
So, is being single too long unhealthy? It can be said, given that being single causes depression, anxiety and a reduced will to live. According to the Health and Human Services Report, people in a relationship are much more likely to be happier and have higher immunity against mental health problems.
If nothing else, being single is a learning experience — one that happens to be good for your mental health, believe it or not. So stop stressing over those seemingly endless (and cliché) “I SAID YES!” posts everyone shares on Instagram, and start appreciating the benefits of single life.
People prefer being single for many reasons.
In one study published in 2022, hundreds of men and women were surveyed about what makes single life attractive, and they rated the top benefits as having more time for themselves, being able to focus on their goals, and not having anyone else dictate their actions.
Difficulties with relationships
The second study found that women gave higher scores to certain factors than men, including having bad experiences from previous relationships and being afraid of changing, while men found conflict avoidance and wanting to be free to flirt as greater reasons for remaining single.
For everyone who ever married, the average of the ratings 3.3, 2.9, and 2.9 is just 3.0. For people who never married, their happiness rating is 3.2. The single people, then, are happier, on the average, than the people who got married.
Around the world, people in relationships tend to be happier and healthier than those who are single. But is it always the case that people who are partnered are better off? Research says no. We are social creatures, and romantic relationships are an important way we fill our social needs.
It turns out married men are actually happier after marriage than they would be if they stayed single, according to researchers at Michigan State University. The study looked at 1,366 people who weren't married before participating in the survey, got married at some point during, and stayed married.
Bad experiences with marriage in the past.
Relationships can be hard work. For some, the lack of success in long-term relationships can make committing to someone for life unappealing. For those who have trouble sustaining healthy relationships, legally binding yourself to another can be scary.
"There is absolutely no set time frame that counts as 'too long' for being single," says Megan Stubbs, EdD, a sexologist and relationship expert based in Michigan. Part of the reason why is because there's no set definition as what "being single" actually looks like.
We took a look at data gathered over the past year, comprised of more than 700,000 screenings, and noticed an interesting trend: people who selected “single” as their partnership status scored more highly consistent for symptoms of depression, than their counterparts.
Adults who are single may feel sadness, grief, regret, and ambivalence about unviable potential mates. In addition, unviable potential partners may become idealized with time and take the place of the anticipated spouse, setting a standard that new and viable potential partners can't meet.
Some age groups have a higher share of singles than others. Adults under 30 are the most likely age group to be single, with roughly half (47%) falling into this category. In contrast, 30- to 49-year-olds are the least likely to be single (21%).
"Some people simply know they want to stay single," New York–based relationship expert and author April Masini tells Bustle. "They enjoy the freedom, and they don't have any anxiety about missing out on being part of a couple," she says. "If you're single, happy and have no regrets, it was meant to be."
Being single isn't for everyone, but a growing number of adults stay single for longer than ever before, and use these years to pursue career goals and take risks that they might not have were they married. And people who stay single for life are often just as happy as peers who marry.
Confidence and self-esteem play a vital role when it comes to love. However, many people are unable to find love because they don't think they're worthy of having it. These types of beliefs often have roots reaching as far back as early childhood and can have a huge impact on our lives.
Among those 18 to 29 years of age, 63% of men versus 34% of women considered themselves single. This dropped to 25% of men and 17% of women for those 30 to 49 years of age.
122 Million American Adults Are Not Married, and Most Never Have Been Married. The Census Report indicated that in 2021, there are now 122 million Americans who are divorced or widowed or have always been single.
You don't need marriage to feel fulfilled.
It doesn't need to be romantic relationship, or even any sort of relationship with another person. You might find your career fulfilling enough, or your hobbies or how you spend your time otherwise.