The Single Life
As freeing as single life can be, there may come a time when you realize you've gotten a little too used to being alone. In fact, you've been without a partner so long that your friends either don't even ask you about your love life anymore, or they're always telling you fake niceties ("The right person will come when you least expect it"—eugh). You've probably even gotten to the point where sharing your space with someone else feels weird to think about. Anyway, if that sounds like you, these 20 signs may feel achingly familiar.
1. You Can't Remember Your Last Date
Whenever someone asks when you last went on a date, you need several seconds to sift through your memory. When was the last time? You might remember the restaurant or the person, but it's been so long that you can't really put your finger on the when.
2. Your Bed Has Become Entirely Yours
Since you don't need to share your bed with anyone, you've developed very specific sleeping habits. Maybe you sleep diagonally or keep a fort of pillows within reach. The point is: you sleep however you want, and you can't really think of surrendering the other half of the mattress to anyone.
3. You Forget People Actually Text Good Morning
People text each other good morning? Well, you're certainly not part of that routine. Your phone usually starts the day with a plethora of unread work emails or notifications from apps, but romantic messages have since become so rare that receiving one would catch you completely off guard.
4. You Automatically Make Plans for One
Whether you're making a dinner reso or scheduling a movie night, you've become far too accustomed to making plans for one. In fact, you never have to think about whether someone else is free—you just follow your own free time! Doing things solo has become ingrained in you at this point.
5. Flirting Goes Completely Over Your Head
When someone does indicate that they're interested in you, it always flies over your head. Wasn't that just them being friendly? You've been so removed from the dating world that you can't even recognize the usual flirting tactics anymore.
6. Your Friends Have Stopped Asking Who You're Seeing
There was probably a time when your friends asked for regular updates about your dating life. Now, though, they stopped asking—your answer is never any different, anyway. If you ever actually mention meeting someone, they'll immediately either think you're just joking (ha, ha) or they'll suddenly be way more interested in the conversation.
7. You Have a Very Specific Routine
Your evenings and weekends follow a very strict routine. Everything happens according to your schedule, and at this point, you can't even imagine adding another person's preferences to the system you've set up. You wouldn't sacrifice your delicate ritual for anyone, anyway!
8. Sharing Food Feels Unnecessary
You've ordered exactly what you wanted, so you're not going to let anyone else lay their hands on it. Plus, since you haven't had a partner routinely reaching across the table for your fries, you've grown accustomed to all your food remaining exactly where you left it.
9. Dating Apps Feel Like Work
Does your stomach do a nauseous flip every time you open a dating app? If matching with someone doesn't feel particularly exciting to you anymore, it's probably because you've gone too long flying solo. After enough time away from dating, the entire process can start to feel more exhausting than intriguing.
10. You've Become Extremely Good at Entertaining Yourself
While your friends say they can't live without their partners, you're the opposite: you don't need another person around to have an enjoyable evening. You'd much rather be independent, even if that means only having a company of one.
11. Couple Activities Feel Strangely Foreign
Seeing people celebrate anniversaries, plan date nights, or discuss weekend trips with their partners can feel like you're observing a lifestyle you can no longer picture firsthand. You understand all of it, of course, but it hasn't been part of your routine for quite some time, so it all seems weirdly foreign to you that it's even a thing.
12. You'd Have to Rearrange Your Home for Someone Else
Flying solo has made you used to not sharing your space, which means your belongings may have expanded into every closet or shelf imaginable. If imagining another person's stuff taking half of that space makes you wince, you've probably been on your own for too long.
13. You're Used to Making Every Decision
Nobody needs to agree with your preferences or weekend plans when you're single. If you want something, you simply do the thing you want, no lengthy negotiating required. Being in a relationship again would mean giving up your autonomy (something you can't fathom giving up), and you'd likely have to make more than a few sacrifices.
14. Romantic Questions Catch You Off Guard
When you've gone a while without being part of a pair, someone asking you what your type is or what you're looking for in a partner might throw you off guard. Even if you have an answer, it's likely rooted in your previous preferences, and not so much what you currently like. Heck, you don't even know whether your priorities have changed!
15. You've Forgotten How Early Dating Works
You know how first dates work, sure, but the rest of the process? All that texting, planning, and whether anything is really going anywhere? Yeah, you've forgotten how all that works. Everything that once seemed intuitive may suddenly require much more thought and effort—two things you'd rather not put yourself through.
16. Your Friends Keep Trying to Set You Up
You might be used to being solo, but your friends may have reached the stage where every single person they meet immediately is a perfect match for you. Their enthusiasm likely even exceeds yours; in their mind, your extended single streak needs serious intervention, even if you think nothing of it.
17. You Don't Automatically Notice Attractive People Anymore
Even if they're not actively setting you up, your friends (taken) might still scan the room for you (single), because you don't do that yourself anymore. Attractive people are all around, sure, but it's not what you're paying attention to. Dating has moved far enough down your priority list that potential romantic prospects don't cross your mind.
18. The Idea of Regular Check-Ins Feels Odd
Having a partner means you have someone who expects a simple message about where you're going and when you'll be back. While that doesn't sound all that odd on its own, you've simply spent too long without informing anyone else about your schedule that you're not sure you'd want to start that back up.
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19. You've Become Extremely Protective of Your Free Time
A weekend with no obligations probably sounds like bliss to you. You've learned exactly how you like spending your downtime, so giving that up to go on an uncertain first date and scope out prospects can feel like a surprisingly large commitment. Most of the time, you'd rather stay home.
20. You've Started Wondering Whether It's Been Too Long
Perhaps the clearest sign that you've been single for way too long is when you've started wondering what dating again would actually be like. Hopping on a dating app might make you cringe, but there might still be that lingering curiosity that won't be sated until you actually do something about it.
