Have you recently gone through a breakup and are single for the first time in years? Great! Me, too! And considering how many relationships come to an end every day, I imagine we’re in great company.
Breakups are hard. But you already know that. They’re dramatic and exhausting and bring out the worst in people, no matter if you were the dumper or the dumpee. What’s also hard, in a different way, is being single again. You’re suddenly alone, without the person who was probably not just your partner but your best friend, and it’s sucks. It forces you to wonder what we’ve all wondered at the end of a relationship, “Will I be alone forever?” No; probably not, but it can feel that way in the moment.
But once that fear subsides you get to realize a very important aspect about a break-up: Being newly single is awesome. Like, to steal the word Carrie Bradshaw overused relentlessly, it's fabulous. In fact, the only thing that can even come close to being newly single is being newly in love. However, they’re on completely different ends of the spectrum in how great they are, because they’re just different.
It’s when you pull yourself out of your bed and wipe your tears from your eyes that you really get to comprehend that being single is going to be great. Really great. Here are the 15 best things about being newly single, so get ready to have some fun.
1. You Get The Bed All To Yourself
When my last relationship came to an end my first thought was: I GET TO SLEEP ALONE! Granted, my partner and I usually slept apart (dude snores like whoa!), but at least now I didn’t have to look at his puppy dog eyes every night as he begged to sleep beside me.
2. That Last Slice Of Pizza Is Automatically Yours
Not only is the last slice of pizza automatically yours, but so is the whole pizza. And all those leftovers from last night, both the both bottles of wine on the counter, the whole gallon of ice cream in the fridge, and you don’t have to worry about coming home to see that the last cookie has been devoured.
3. You’re The Only One Who Gets To Decide On Which Movie You’ll Watch
Which means your days of watching Die Hard, and every single sequel, are over!
4. You No Longer Have To Check Your Partner’s Schedule To Make Plans
Of course, it’s not like you ever had to get permission or something archaic, but if someone invited you both to dinner, you’d always have to run it by your partner first to see if they could make it. Now, when it comes to invites, it’s just you and only you, with whom you need to check in.
5. You Can Flirt Without Feeling Guilty
Personally, I never felt guilty flirting while in a relationship because I think it’s harmless. But for those who do, now you can flirt up a storm and feel totally fine about it.
6. Your Life Is Suddenly A Lot Less Dramatic
Even the most stable relationships have some level of drama. I mean, how else does one get to have makeup sex? But drama can be exhausting, and that’s something you realize when you’re newly single.
7. ‘Look But Don’t Touch’ Goes Out The Window
At a bar with some friends and a cute guy or gal is totally into you? Awesome; your make-out and hookup days are back in session.
8. You Have An Excuse To Treat Yourself
Although I feel one should never need an excuse to splurge, for those who need an excuse, a breakup gives you just that. Besides, you deserve those Louboutin boots after what you’ve been through, right? (Right.)
9. You No Longer Have To Deal With In-Laws (Or Their Unsavory Friends)
Even if you were never married or living together, being in a relationship means dealing with your partner’s family (whom you may not always love) and dealing with their friends (and we all have that one friend of our partner whom we hate). In being newly single, you no longer have to deal with those people or play nice with them again. Ever again.
10. You Get To Say, ‘What Do I Want To Do Today?’ Without Running It By Someone Else
Again, this isn’t about suddenly having permission, but suddenly have your life, yours and yours alone, in the palm of your hands again.
11. You Can Take As Long As You Want In The Bathroom
If you want to sit on the toilet and take the longest poop in the world while catching up on magazines, you totally can. If you want to take a 30-minute-long shower followed by an hour of trying to, finally, get your eyeliner perfect, there’s no one there to be annoyed by it.
12. You Have Your Time Back To Yourself
Like, all your time. To the point where you actually say out loud to yourself, “I have so much time now!"
13. You No Longer Have To Have Petty Arguments
Every couple has petty arguments and while it’s not the type of thing that would tear a couple apart, it can be annoying as hell. No more annoyances now!
14. You Get To Be A Hot Mess
What I mean by a hot mess isn’t exactly crying and screaming on the street (although, by all means go for it, if the mood strikes), but just a mess in general. You get to live in sweatpants, leave empty pizza boxes piled up in the living room, not do the dishes for a whole damn week... basically, be a slovenly mess, because whateverrrrr.
15. Your Compromising Days Are Behind You (At Least For Now)
Every relationship requires a compromise. Whether it’s a small compromise (Fine! We can go to your favorite restaurant tonight!) or a big compromise (Fine! Your unemployed brother can have the spare room six months!), compromises are just part of the game. But without a relationship, you no longer have to compromise. And this is a wonderful thing that you get to realize the very second it sinks in that being single is actually pretty awesome.
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