Whats it really like living alon

I suppose it depends on whether you have chosen to live on your own. I love living on my own. My little cottage is my sanctuary, where I can do as I like. I have my lovely dog for companionship if I need it, and my four children and all my grandchildren live within a radius of 20 miles from me. I have friends who visit and I can come and go as I please. I never feel lonely.

When sharing my enjoyment of living alone with my BiL, who has just become a widower, he said 'ah yes, but I haven't chosen to lose my wife, and it's going to take me some time to get accustomed to this new way of living.'

I can remember what loneliness felt like - that was when I was married to a mean, selfish man.

I've been on my own for most of the last 20 years, and I love the freedom.
I've lots of friends, but I must admit that sometimes I would like a man to take me somewhere, as in 'being escorted, driven and looked after', instead of going out with a girlfriend,and doing the parking, booking a table or tickets etc. ourselves.

Just occasionally!

Gally you sound like a really positive minded person who is making her journey in a logical and reasoned way. I hope to be like you if I am in the same situation. Good for you.

I've been on my own for 10 months. I hate the late afternoons, especially when it's dark and I hate the weekends if I haven't got anything planned and everyone else seems to be busy doing family things.I've never lived totally on my own - ever and I am a gregarious type who needs company. Having said that, I have only spent a maximum of 5 weeks at a time on my own as I visit family and friends a lot, they come here, I've been to Australia for 9 weeks and I go on little jaunts with a friend, who is in a similar situation. Next year after I return from Australia in early April, I am determined to stay here for as long as possible and carve out a 'new' life for myself. I think during the first year you have to play it by ear and do just what comes naturally, but eventually life has to go on and I am too young to become 'old' before my time. It has certainly put a new perspective on things for me and I now feel empathy for those who are alone and lonely, not from their own choice.
Barrow I too hate that coming home to a dark (although I usually leave a lot of lights on!) empty house with nobody to greet me and to listen to my news. Sometimes I just can't believe I am me when I think about what I was doing this time last year. It most definitely was life-changing.

I am from a large family so have always had others around me and therefore enjoy my own company when I get it but it may well be different if I were permanently alone. I don't think we can really anticipate what such a life change would be like before the event.

I think I would be busy like Barrow but know I would miss DH so much as we are such good friends and get on so well most of the time.

Please don't assume that living with someone always means you can't do what you like when you like. I think we mostly do just that as we have a lot we share and those things we don't we each still do but not together. Over the years we have developed so many shared interests that what one of us wants to do is usually what the other wants too.

I have been on my own for over a year now, there are times when I desperately miss my DH, but I like to think he is still with me (and I still talk to him every day!).

Being alone doesn't mean you are lonely. I keep busy and I see friends and family frequently. The worse time for me is if I have been out in the evening and coming home to a dark empty house

I enjoyed living alone except maybe on the odd few dark winter days when night seemed to last for 24 hours. I wasn't sure how I would take to it as I'd never lived alone prior to leaving my ex but it was liberating. Like Greatnan I enjoyed the freedom to do whatever I wanted.

I found that even though I like being with people I also quite enjoyed my own company.

I love living alone. I can please myself about when and what I eat, what I watch on TV, what time I sleep, where I go on holiday. Some people assume that because they would not like it themselves, , everyone who lives alone must be lonely.
In fact, because there is still a difference in life expectancy between the sexes, many women will end up living alone.

I have got used to living on my own. I like my own company and rarely feel lonely except when I've been to visit the family or they've been to see me. Then I miss them. I would like to live closer to them so that we could do things (theatre, cinema and so on) together, especially now that the children are bigger.

Good to think you can find a bit of virtual company on Gransnet london

cheelu i dont like nights on my own .but it,s some think that has to be done x