Many stories have been written regarding single people and how they have dealt with the pandemic and being isolated in their homes, by themselves. The effects come from both ends of the spectrum, varying from some people describing it as being ‘dreadful’, to others thriving from this time and have used it to simply ‘be with themselves’.
It all comes down to what type of person you are, whether you crave human company and affection or not. While there is still an essence of social pressure to ‘find your other half’, the notion of a sad unpartnered soul has been mostly left behind. Single people are no longer denied social amenities such as a packed social calendar, an active sex life or owning a home of their own. The time you don’t invest in ‘building your future with somebody’ can be spent on doing whatever it is that you wish to do.
However, the pandemic cut out that sense of freedom. Social gatherings became a thing of the past, seeing somebody without a face mask felt like disobeying the law and even the fear of contracting the virus itself made us all much more self aware of who we get close to. The pandemic amped up the things that are lonely and stressful about being single and erased the fun parts.
This is where our reliance on social media plays its part, you can meet people without actually meeting them. Although it can be an untrustworthy place, it was the only way to stimulate the need for human interaction in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.
People that were isolated in their home with their partners or families could appreciate the ‘social’ narrative that something like eating dinner together could have, while single people didn’t get to enjoy the slightest taste of human interaction unless if was through a screen. This amped up the levels of creativity for many people, which eventually faded as humans crave to share their achievements with other humans.
These circumstances would also have sparked some mixed feelings. Many people reported via social media that they felt out of their comfort zone with not knowing what the future had in store for them. While other simply enjoyed their time home, adding that ‘they spent their isolation with the family and enjoyed it’.
The pandemic itself had different impacts on different people, some saw it as an opportunity to better themselves, while others simply couldn’t wait for it to end and to return to their previous lives.