Staff Writer: Brandi Howliet
Do you scroll down your timeline and constantly see couples in love? Does it drive you
crazy, especially around the holidays? Don’t worry, below are a few steps on how to alleviate the struggles of being single during the holiday season.
- Be grateful for the ones you do have.
The first thing you need to do when you feel down about being single is count your blessings. Dwelling on what you don’t have in your life and constantly obsessing about it is not going to make things better; it will actually get worse. Allow for a relationship to happen naturally instead of obsessing over it. You’ll drain yourself mentally and lose focus on what matters. Stress over the uncontrollable factors on life only leads to one thing more stress, so why put yourself through it when you don’t have to? Look away from the fact that you’re single and be grateful for the friends and family that you do have because many don’t have those at all. When struggling with loneliness, it’s best to pull yourself out of your misery and surround yourself with loved ones. Keep in mind, the energy you put out is the same energy you’ll receive. If you’re constantly down and out about being single, well, you’re going to stay single.
- Get over the fear of missing out.
A lot of us have friends and family members who are in relationships. Whether we know
them to be good or bad, we often take things at face value and assume what we want. It’s important to know that you’ll never fully know a relationship unless you are the one in it. A couple could appear happily in love when in reality things aren’t so sweet. Feeling as if you’re missing out on something when you don’t know the full extent of the situation isn’t progressive. This only prolongs the feeling of loneliness and feeds your want for a relationship rather than distracting it.
- Recognize that you aren’t alone
Understand that you aren’t the only single person on the face of the earth. Take the initiative to spend time with friends that happen to be single.
“I think spending the holiday season single is perfectly fine,” said HU student Kimberlee-Mykel Thompson, a sophomore from Winston Salem, NC. “Of course, it’d be nice to have a significant other for the holidays but I’m just fine without one.”
Hanging out with another person who’s in the same predicament as you makes things feel better. Plus, it’s way more enjoyable than third-wheeling! There are plenty of people who enjoy being single during the holidays.
- Know that the singles are ready to mingle
The Christmas spirit sends everyone into intense joy and celebratory moods. If you plan on attending any Christmas parties soon keep in mind that there may be other singles present as well. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and try to meet someone new. Sometimes, the best cure to being single is to just get out and mingle. Being constantly wrapped up into your own head only intensifies your lonely feelings, so let go of this mentality.
Utilizing these steps and actively putting them into your life will help ease the pain of being single during the holidays. Keep faith that love will come along one day, but don’t let the absence of a relationship ruin your holiday season.
The Hampton Script 