Holiday Advice For The Single Woman: 8 Reasons To Enjoy It

Ah, the holidays: A time to reconnect with family, give selflessly to others ... and withstand the flood of ads depicting couples cuddling by the fire as they swap diamond bracelets and luxury car keys.

Instead of feeling down on yourself the next time Grandma asks you when you are going to give her great grandchildren, why not focus on why it's sweet to be single over the holidays?

PHOTOS: Here are 8 reasons to celebrate being single at this time of year:

 

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Comments

[weareallzombies]

01:22 PM on 12/01/2011

I always find it odd how many people come out on these types of articles to bash single people. I certainly don't care if you are married or having children, so why do you go out of your way to call me selfish if I am not following in your footsteps?

I am happy being single and dating instead of marriage, and you are happy being married. That is what life is all about, finding what makes you happy and doing it.

[Dorothy Stover]

11:35 PM on 11/30/2011

They forgot to add you can make out with whomever you want

[Liz4BellaVita]

06:38 PM on 11/30/2011

I'm not single, but I often take trips over Thanksgiving to recharge. Traveling was a great option when I was single. I had a group of friends who are up for a holiday adventure, so we go together. Most love having a reason not to spend time with their crazy families on both Thanksgiving and Christmas. :)

I write about happiness. Get your daily dose here: www.elizabethfarrar.com

[The Corporate Champion]

12:02 PM on 11/30/2011

Statistics: most women want to get married and have children.

Deep down inside, not even the single woman believes the "It's ok to be single" propaganda. This is why many women, who are well into their 30s, get depressed when they see happy couples, or happy children, because they don't have those, and they realize their time is running out.

Those who advocate such propaganda are usually the ones who have failed to get married themselves (for whatever reasons they might be).

[2crudedudes]

02:49 PM on 11/30/2011

got a link for your statistics?

[Still Posting]

04:43 PM on 12/02/2011

'This is why many women, who are well into their 30s, get depressed when they see happy couples'

Who says they get depressed?

You sound like a man that is fearful of women's new-found freedoms.

Those old beliefs you are stating as 'facts' and 'statistics' seem as if they come from someone insecure or lonely himself.

Logically, it makes no sense for a single man to wish for FEWER single women. It's a bigger dating pool for you!

And, if you're already married, why would you care WHAT women do? You're already set and happy . . . right?

[ystava]

08:51 AM on 11/30/2011

I love the afterthought of helping the needy after all the consumerism of the previous 7 slides.

[critterzrool]

07:31 AM on 11/30/2011

This season can be tough if you're single, especially if you were formerly a couple and have a lot of holiday memories or you have to deal with arranging the kids' celebrations with the ex, etc. It really is a good thing to set aside time or money or a pet project for yourself to help your mood, and there are some good suggestions here.

[Badger33]

02:10 AM on 11/30/2011

Keep your expectations low. See it as much-needed down time. Do something for yourself that you normally wouldn't have the time or energy to do. Understand that being in a relationship is no guaranty of happiness.

[critterzrool]

07:32 AM on 11/30/2011

Badgers looked great against Penn State, keeping my fingers crossed for MSU!!

[Still Posting]

04:45 PM on 12/02/2011

Honestly, I think that is superb advice.

[aurora97]

01:52 AM on 11/30/2011

I think that holidays are overrated. You can have fun if you decide to have it. No matter how. There are infinite options to enjoy, so celebrate it single or not. Sometimes you can be lonely in a family-smothered party or vice-versa.

[Palaver]

11:43 PM on 11/29/2011

The Holidays were fun before they became another reason to feel terribly inadequate. Cheers to me!

[Capn Scott]

11:17 PM on 11/29/2011

Rather than, say, finding someone to pair up with during the holidays so that you can keep each other company?

[Brigette]

09:52 PM on 11/29/2011

Thank you for this. I've disliked the holidays for years for the reasons you mention. There are ads everywhere telling you that you should have things you don't. It's like judgment per every Zales or Pillsbury Dough Boy commercial. It also means being forced to go to the frigid midwest of my childhood and be judged by the folks. I love January, when I can take a holiday from the holidays. If you have kids, then the whole thing is great, seeing their eyes when they unwrap exactly what they wanted. But I don't see why grown people without kids are forced to deal with this every year. And if you're not religious, it's even worse, since there really is no reason to celebrate. Of course you're supposed to be! I feel like it's celebrating my failures.

[Capn Scott]

11:24 PM on 11/29/2011

Be of good cheer. It could be worse....you could actually _have_ kids for the other 364 days of the year.

[Still Posting]

04:53 PM on 12/02/2011

It's important to resist society's dictate on what your activities or values should be.

If I had kids perhaps I would act differently - for their own childhood memories. But beyond following the law, there is no reason for a single adult to be manipulated by society .

[edtastic]

06:47 PM on 11/29/2011

This is sad. I remember when families were the center of our world and now the self centered singles have decided to piss on that idea. No being single is not better, it just means our culture is broken and these are the consequences. You can pump up your ego any way you like but don't tell children families don't mean anything anymore and since we were all born into them we should recognize how important it is to complete the life cycle. Spend the holiday's fixing yourself so you can pair off like a healthy fully functional human. A few hermits are ok but when it get's popular we are heading off a cliff.

[InedaName]

09:12 PM on 11/29/2011

"Spend the holiday's fixing yourself so you can pair off like a healthy fully functional human."

If you're not already a healthy fully functional human all on your own, then what would you have to offer to another healthy fully functional human to make them want to be your partner?

No misfit toys for me!

[MsMaincoon]

09:52 PM on 11/29/2011

Far too much emphasis on "family" these days--mostly all of it is hype and corporate greed for holiday sales dollars. Singles, like me, should enjoy themselves every day even around the holidays with or without family. It would do some good for some to read and discover the real reason for most of these holidays.

[Daniel Myers]

10:55 PM on 11/29/2011

Hell DINKs like me and my wife have a pretty good time having my third thanksgiving this weekend. Yep sending society right off a cliff.

[edtastic]

12:15 AM on 11/30/2011

Too much emphasis on family? I am sorry you are so jaded but a family is where you came from and it is still the most significant fundamental structure in human civilization. You want to talk about greed in the season of giving as if buying each other gifts was inherently evil.

Are you seriously suggesting reading what the holiday's are about is better than spending it with loved ones? That is just sad. I hope you find some family blood related or not. Just being content with being alone sounds too much like Scrouge.

[Box500]

05:22 PM on 11/29/2011

The lady doth protest too much, methinks

[strawberrykiki]

04:48 PM on 11/29/2011

I thought this was cute...thank you. I recently broke up with someone and am not excited about being single for the holidays. Although, I'm sure there are plenty of unhappy people in relationships who wish they were single!!

[InedaName]

09:13 PM on 11/29/2011

Take the money you would have spent on gifts for your ex and donate it to a good charity.

[Capn Scott]

11:19 PM on 11/29/2011

Heck with that...donate it to me instead.

[Randybostonterrier]

02:06 AM on 11/30/2011

If you weren't married, you have always been single just in a serious long term relationship.

[tamalewithaD]

04:45 PM on 11/29/2011

So.......almost all the benefits of being single are that we get to be totally selfish (although I guess we should feel good knowing we can use all the time we save by not having to worry about anyone else by giving back to the community)? Is that the point of this slideshow? Also, if grandma is asking you to give her grandchildren, let her know your parents already took care of that and get her checked for dementia.

[amymari]

10:49 PM on 11/29/2011

Maybe you missed the part about spending time with your parents, siblings, etc.

[Randybostonterrier]

02:07 AM on 11/30/2011

Why do you have to feel like you are selfish because you aren't catering to someone 24/7 in your free time? I find that odd.