(ThyBlackMan.com) In a world that tends to be connected 24/7, many of us find ourselves too often overburdened and over-committed. We are living in a vortex of constant communication through digital devices. Between smartphones, tablets, and laptops, many of us are online or on-screen for several hours of the day. We are overwhelmed with communication but without a meaningful connection.
While this illusion of being involved and connected may appear to make you more productive, it can make you lose something that may help us more: Time for ourselves – Solitude.
In today’s persistently connected world, finding solitude has become a lost art. Solitude has gotten a bad rap in this modern life. It has developed negative associations with the idea of being alone and has made us believe that solitude is our enemy.
When kids misbehave, parents let them be in solitude as a form of punishment. And if you are in solitude your friends and loved ones would ask if you are okay and become worried as they see it as unhealthy introvert behavior. In this modern world, extroverts are celebrated, and it is considered a default personality mode.
People often confuse being alone or in solitude with being lonely. But they are two completely different things. Solitude doesn’t necessarily cause loneliness. Many people feel lonely despite being in the constant presence of other people.
In reality, solitude is an essential component of your health, well-being, and potential success.
So how do you get back in touch with your true self? What are the benefits of reconnecting with yourself?
Listed below are six health benefits of solitude that can be incredibly healing.
Helps Reboot Your Brain and Rejuvenate
Solitude works wonders for your brain. We are often so busy racing around and getting things done or immersed in our daily life routine. Incessantly being “on” does not give your brain a chance to rest and replenish itself. Whereas solitude can help reboot, refocus, rejuvenate, and restart your brain.
After a busy day, you need to excuse yourself from your daily responsibilities and give your brain a chance to focus on your development. Of course, getting things done is important but rejuvenating yourself is important too.
Boosts Your Creativity and Productivity
Taking intentional time for yourself can also help increase your creative powers. Why? Being alone with your thoughts lets your mind wander so you can spark new ideas. Now you understand why artists, musicians, and authors seek solitude in the woods or private studios when they want to create something new.
Where group efforts are often highly-praised for improving collaboration and innovation, it can also be distracting. Whereas when you are alone and have a little privacy, you become better at solving problems and improve your productivity.
Allows You To Find Yourself and Deepen Your Relationships
When you are in solitude, you learn to make choices without external influences. When you are alone, you can spend your time exactly the way you wish, without worrying about others’ feelings. Solitude becomes a medium to help you get a better insight into who you are as a person. When you start understanding yourself, you become more confident and comfortable in yourself.
When you spend time with yourself and gain a better understanding of who you are and what you deserve, you can decide who and what needs to be around you. After you have spent some time alone, you will feel grateful for relationships. It is a significant benefit you can reap from solitude.
Lets You Connect With Your Spirituality
Solitude lets you recoup the most exalted and most spiritually matured self of you. It gives you time to reacquaint yourself with the inborn spark that you carried within yourself but was unfelt.
Solitude for spiritual purposes not just gives you inner peace but also enhances your soul. When you spend time with yourself, you begin to understand the interrelationship of everything on earth. No matter your spiritual custom, solitude is spiritually powerful. It allows you to find your place in the universe, as well as, connect with more obscure forces in the universe.
Enhances Your Mental Health
Learning to be in solitude and being comfortable in your skin may take some time to get used to it. But developing such skills could help you become mentally stronger.
Some studies prove that people who find comfort in solitude find more happiness, get better life satisfaction, and experience lower levels of stress. They are also less likely to experience depression.
A few other studies also state that teens and adults who spend a moderate amount of time in solitude are mentally stronger than those who spend more or less time alone.
Improves Concentration and Memory
When working in a group is often considered as one of the best ways to generate new ideas, it also makes you put in less effort. It is because you assume that other members in the group will fill in the gaps. This is called social loafing.
Whereas working on things when you are all alone can help increase your attention, which in turn can improve your concentration and memory.
Furthermore, when you are around others, you are easily distracted and interrupted. As a result, you start multitasking, reducing your memory. When you work in solitude and remove those distractions and interruptions from other members of the group, you are better able to concentrate better, which will help you to be more productive.
Solitude is good for your mind, soul, and body. It can help you work through your problems more effectively, makes you more empathetic, and allows you to plan your life. It is as necessary as exercise or healthy eating. Set aside a few minutes each day to be alone with your thoughts, for your overall well-being, and watch what happens.
If you are not used to solitude, you can feel uncomfortable at first. But creating that alone time is essential to becoming the best version of yourself.
Staff Writer; Charlotte Johnson
Health guru at heart, yet able to touch base on many topics… Feel free to hit me up at; CharlotteJ@ThyBlackMan.com.