You stop replying to texts. You take a break from posting on social media. You stop going out to social events. Why? Because you‘d rather be alone.

Why do we want to be alone?

Maybe you’re just tired of surface-level people who don’t understand you or take the time to hear you, so you’d rather be alone.

Maybe you’re sick of seeing the highs of people’s lives on social media and are longing for real, authentic connections, so you take a break from it, and you’d rather be alone.

Maybe you’re tired of always being there for people, hearing their problems and caring for them, but when you need them or thought they’d be there the way you expected them to, they let you down, and you’d rather be alone.

Maybe your depression kicked back in, and you can’t find the desire or motivation to get out of bed; you know you can’t go out and fake a smile because you’re numb, so you’d rather be alone.

Maybe you’re sick of being hurt and disappointed by love, so you push every potential love interest away because you fear them hurting you, so you’d rather be alone.

Maybe you know hanging out with certain friends will bring out your dark side, your toxic behaviors, only bringing you back to square one, so you’d rather be alone.

Maybe your anxiety is super heightened, and you fear putting yourself back into social situations because you’re in a fragile state, so you’d rather be alone.

Maybe you’re in a state of healing and reflecting your past wounds, and you are trying your best to pull your strength together, so you’d rather be alone.

When someone pushes you away and need their alone time, we must respect their boundaries. As humans, we must understand that everyone is battling with something internal, and being alone is important, as it strengthens our mind, body, and soul in the long run. Being alone is powerful, as it allows us to step back and reflect on how to move forward in a positive, transformative way. It’s okay to be alone so you can reflect on how to come back stronger.