Being alone brings us different advantages and drawbacks. Discover our top articles about being alone with examples and prompts to guide you.
I’m the type of person who prefers staying inside the house on the weekend rather than partying outside. Don’t get me wrong, I also like loud music and socializing sometimes, but they exhaust me. Plus, I save money when I cozy up in my room to catch up on my Netflix series.
Unlike many think, being alone doesn’t automatically mean you’re lonely. Additionally, there are many benefits we can get from appreciating our alone time. However, being alone all the time is also unwise; that’s why it’s critical to find the perfect balance to reap its full benefits. You can read essays about being alone to explore this subject more.
Contents
- 5 Example Articles
- 1. Loneliness Matters: A Theoretical and Empirical Review of Consequences and Mechanisms by Louise Hawkley, PH.D. and John Cacioppo, PH.D.
- 2. How To Be Alone Without Being Lonely by Ruchi Sinha
- 3. How Loneliness Changes Across Your Lifetime by Kira Newman
- 4. 10 Things That Happen When You Start To Enjoy Being Alone by Tony Robinson
- 5. The History of Loneliness by Jill Lepore
- 6 Prompts for Articles About Being Alone
- Author
5 Example Articles
1. Loneliness Matters: A Theoretical and Empirical Review of Consequences and Mechanisms by Louise Hawkley, PH.D. and John Cacioppo, PH.D.
“Loneliness is not simply being alone. Interventions to reduce loneliness and its health consequences may need to take into account its attentional, confirmatory, and memorial biases as well as its social and behavioral effects.”
Hawkley and Cacioppo highlight the human need for social interaction and how isolation can increase vulnerability and sensitivity to social threats. This hypervigilance affects physiological functioning critical to survival; thus, the authors dedicate a study to learning the consequences of loneliness via a comprehensive theoretical framework.
They found that chronic perceived isolation impacts cognition and attention, thereby weighing heavily on mortality and morbidity. The pair recommends having loneliness interventions because humans are naturally social creatures.
2. How To Be Alone Without Being Lonely by Ruchi Sinha
“People may savor being alone at first as they suddenly feel they have more time to do things they have always wanted to do… However, as weeks pass by, and ‘being alone’ does not remain a personal choice but something that is mandated upon you, one can feel burnout and restlessness as loneliness sets in.”
Sinha delves into the effects of loneliness, such as depression, despair, and anxiety, and then tackles how one can fight these negative outcomes. After differentiating social loneliness from emotional loneliness, she lists the steps one must take to fend off adverse results.
This includes acknowledging your loneliness, doing something constructive, and reaching out to friends in real life or virtually. Her article is littered with studies backing up her list to make it more convincing to the readers. She also mentions the importance of caring for others for a sense of purpose.
3. How Loneliness Changes Across Your Lifetime by Kira Newman
“If loneliness is more about our state of mind than the number of appointments on our calendar, though, the adults may be on to something with their more internally focused strategies.”
Newman addresses that loneliness is an inevitable feeling people have to deal with as social animals. She mentions that it’s crucial to know why we become lonely in different stages of life so we can better handle our emotions. The author presents these reasons through research, pinpointing “perceived” loneliness subjective to each person. She connects these studies to life’s general trajectory from youth creating their network of many friends and colleagues to olden age when we learn who to value and let go.
She also talks about other factors that affect loneliness, such as normalcy and suffering. At the end of her piece, Newman shares advice on how to feel less lonely, including practicing self-compassion and realizing others also feel lonely.
4. 10 Things That Happen When You Start To Enjoy Being Alone by Tony Robinson
“I’m not advocating you go all Tom Hanks in Cast Away, because no one can argue the benefits and the joy that come along with fulfilling relationships with other people. I am saying that once you learn to enjoy being alone, you’re going to grow as a person.”
Robinson centers his article on how learning to enjoy being alone can lead to personal growth and offers ten advantages of spending time with one’s thoughts. These include getting in touch with your emotions, feeling more independent, and stopping seeking validation. His article encourages the readers to appreciate being alone so they can focus on their happiness and self-love.
5. The History of Loneliness by Jill Lepore
“The loneliness epidemic, in this sense, is rather like the obesity epidemic. Evolutionarily speaking, panicking while being alone, like finding high-calorie foods irresistible, is highly adaptive, but, more recently, in a world where laws (mostly) prevent us from killing one another, we need to work with strangers every day, and the problem is more likely to be too much high-calorie food rather than too little. These drives backfire.”
Lepore recounts how humans supported each other and couldn’t live alone centuries ago. She uses the case of Mr. and Miss Chimpanzee in The Philadelphia Zoological Garden and how the male chimpanzee acted when the female one died, noting his grief at his companion’s passing. She considers humans as primates who crave intimacy and how the 2020 pandemic leads to an epidemic of loneliness.
The writer uses many books, studies, and experts’ comments to explain modern loneliness and what influences it. Lepore then shares her experience as she tried to live alone and how she disliked that part of her life.
6 Prompts for Articles About Being Alone
1. Pros and Cons of Being Alone
Collect reliable data from trustworthy sources explaining the pros and cons of being alone. List these pros and cons and back them up with scientific reasons or expert opinions. For instance, being alone boosts creativity as it promotes an anxiety-free environment. However, it can also make you lethargic because you don’t interact with anyone else.
2. Why I Like Being Alone
To make your article more exciting, interview two people with opposing views about being alone. One can be an introvert, while the other is an extrovert, then talk about their stance on alone time. You can reach out online for various opinions if you can’t interview anyone. Introverts appreciate being alone, while on the other hand, extroverts favor being around others. Remember to support your article with studies promoting your findings.
3. My Free Time
In this article, describe how you like to spend your free time. Speak about how you want to spend your alone time when you have a break or holiday. It can be as simple as reading a book inside a cafe or as gripping as creating a plan for your organization’s next mission. You should do these activities solo to keep true to the “being alone” concept.
4. Being Alone During the Pandemic
Focus this article on how you spent your time during the 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic. This is an excellent prompt, especially for those who had to be on lockdown with no one else inside their house. Describe how your days went, how you coped with boredom, and how you managed the loneliness. You can also include tips you’ve discovered worked well to enjoy the isolation, such as having a pet or coming across a new hobby.
5. When Being Alone Gets Too Much
Delve into the warning signs one should look out for when spending alone time excessively. Your article can also guide friends and relatives of an individual who’s not just spending time alone but suffering silently.
Your article should include health issues and cases to demonstrate the importance of identifying mild versus severe loneliness. Those who want to be alone for prolonged periods can be battling anxiety, depression, and grief, which can negatively impact their mental health.
6. Being Alone Is Better Than…
Write a fun article describing situations where being alone is better than doing something. You can interview people for their input and comments to make your piece more engaging. For example, being alone is better than being with the wrong friends or staying with a toxic partner.
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