5 Things I Learned living alone
Living alone can be exhilarating, but it can also be scary. Oftentimes, it’s both. I have learned a lot, both about myself and the world around me, by living alone. I was scared and exited. Here are 5 things I learned living alone.
Produce goes bad faster than you think it does
You’re living on your own! You can buy your own groceries and make your own meals! Maybe you even decide it’s time to eat healthier. Please keep in mind, friend, that produce always goes bad faster than you think it will.
With all the different produce I buy, avocados are by far my greatest enemy when it comes to freshness. I buy 2 on Monday and by lunchtime on Wednesday they’ve gone bad! To combat this, I try to buy all my avocados at varying degrees of ripeness so they all don’t go bad at the same time.
Apples, bananas, and berries usually last for up to a week if they are properly stored. Additionally, I buy soy milk instead of regular cow’s milk because it lasts for weeks! Remember to buy small enough serving sizes for you to eat before your food goes bad!
Please, clean your space(s)
Ants and spiders are no joke, friends. If you don’t keep your space clean, you run a much higher chance of attracting unwanted visitors! It’s SO much easier to keep bugs away by maintaining a clean environment than to exterminate them after they show up.
Additionally, living in a clean environment can positively impact your mental health. Having a clean space to live in gives you a sense of order and control as well as familiarity and consistency.
Keeping your space clean may even encourage you to have friends over more often!
You need to make an effort to hang out with friends
Speaking of friends, you need to make an effort to hang out with them. In high school, you could hang out with your friends during passing periods and free hours, extracurriculars, and, if you were lucky, class itself. But there’s a good chance that now you aren’t seeing your best friends automatically every day. You need to actually make an effort to hang out with them at LEAST once a week. Invite them out for lunch, over for dinner, to watch a movie, or even to have a study date. A weekly or monthly wine and board game night can have HUGE benefits for both your friendship and your mental health.
Smile at your neighbors
As I was getting at above, socialization and connection are so important to us as human beings. Studies show that one of the biggest factors in building relationships is physical proximity. When you live alone, your neighbors are as physically close as you can get!
Befriending your neighbors can really come in handy if you or they ever need a favor done or help with a project. Friendships between neighbors are mutually beneficial, meaning you help each other. Invite them over for dinner, help them carry in their groceries, or help change a lightbulb in a hard-to-reach place, and someday they’ll return the favor!
Alone isn’t always lonely
Being alone and being lonely are two separate things. A person can feel lonely in a room full of people, but completely content in their own company. Just because you live alone doesn’t mean you are going to be lonely. Spend time with your friends. Build relationships with your neighbors and coworkers. Connect online with a community of people! Call your loved ones and talk over the phone. Hey, maybe it’s time to adopt a pet ;). Living alone isn’t lonely. In fact, when living alone you can feel the most connected to the people and world around you than you’ve ever been.
