Understanding The Value Of Alone Time

Understanding The Value Of Alone Time

Today, it is not uncommon for sulking teenagers in movies to state, “I need some time alone”, or for parents to give their children some ‘alone time’ when their children have misbehaved. Even married couples have time away from each other too.

This isn’t just some spur of anti-social behavior. Studies show that ‘alone time’ is necessary for everyone. It is in ‘alone time’ that people can think over many things including fears and insecurities. It is also in this moment that such dread can be dealt with.

Alone time is the perfect time to re-assess your life and where you currently are. In a relationship, couples need this, not only so they don’t get sick of each other, but also to retain their identity as a singular person. Time-outs for kids make a great alternative to spanking – it doesn’t instill doing good only out fear of being punished in their systems, but it helps them think about what they did wrong that caused this isolation.

However, everyone knows that too much of something is certainly bad (try eating loads of chocolates in one sitting). What comes to mind immediately from spending too much time by yourself, is not knowing how to fit in to other’s lives or how they fit in yours. One could end up feeling disjointed from the world, and the feeling of alienation.

It is a current finding that humans are hardwired to seek others out. Too much alone time causes the body to send out stress signals. Being alone can cause the feeling of loneliness, and this, in turn, sends out the hormone cortisol, putting the body on alert. Too much cortisol can cause the body to crash –, it increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases and hypertension. Also, it can affect memory and ones sleeping patterns.

The absence of companionship may also register as pain in one’s brain. If you’ve ever been left out in a group, you would know this feeling. Studies show that when social exclusion happens, the same area in the brain when one is hurt physically is activated.

So now, if we think of friends as stress buffers, we see how being in relationships help a lot. Friends can offer not only social support, but also psychological. Sometimes, thinking alone may not be enough to sort things out. Parrying with yourself can’t be too productive at times, so having someone to bounce ideas back and forth with helps, especially if the said person has already gone through it. There is also that possibility that your friends can help one to think positively, and live fully and healthily. One’s friends can be exercise partners, your own personal caretakers when sick, or your help hotline when you’re depressed.

Therefore, just enough time away from others is ideal. When you’re feeling fed up with the world, let life go on without you for a while. Find a comfortable place, spend time with yourself. Think things over. Just be. And then when you’ve collected your thoughts and yourself, go back and join the ride through life again.