Do you feel lonely staying alone?

[Anonymous]

Hello Friends,

I have a topic to ask you all.

Many of the members here are single and are probably staying in their own home/apartment (I understand that it is common in Western countries for adults to move out of their parents' home and stay in their own home/apartment after they turn to their 20s).

I have a question for you all. Do you feel lonely at times while staying in your own home/apartment alone? If yes, how do you manage/overcome it?

I am from an Asian country and here the culture is such that we will stay with our parents and grandparents in the same house.

So, I don't really feel the loneliness yet because there are still people (my parents) around in my home. (Note: I have no siblings and am in my mid-thirties now.)

But, there might be a possibility that I might be living alone (perhaps around 20 years later). I am concerned if I can cope with loneliness that I face when staying alone. That thought really frightens me.

I remember there was once when my parents went to a trip for 3 days and I was alone at home. The first day was alright. But from the 2nd day onwards, I started to feel a bit uncomfortable being alone at home. It made me have thoughts like my future seems to look bleak and I felt very dull and hopeless. I also noticed that when I went out to the shop nearby during the 3 days, I felt better and those thoughts did not bother me much. I only felt better after my parents came back home. 

I think loneliness is an issue that can be bothersome. I remember reading another person's experience in a forum whereby he is single and stays at home alone. He feels lonely whenever he goes home after work every day. So, he will stay out and drink alcoholic drinks and become drunk. Then, he will go straight home and sleep immediately without worrying about loneliness. He said that it is his way of coping with loneliness. I felt sad reading about his experience.

Owning a pet might be a good option to keep me company and ward off loneliness when I am alone. But I sometimes feel guilty that I am trying to own a pet for selfish reasons.

Please do share your views about this. I hope to learn alternate viewpoints of life from this discussion.

Thank you.