There are so many single people in the country that there’s actually an entire week devoted to it. That’s right; in September every year, there’s a whole week just for people that are single. When you think about it, you can see that Americans can be strongly biased when it comes to marriage. Health care and tax laws are a couple of examples of how Americans favor married people. You can also tell by how many divorced people remarry. Being single is considered to be a bad thing. The question is: Why?
Consider that single people tend to be more active in their communities than those that are married. Single people are typically more generous when it comes to helping others. They also tend to visit their neighbors more, spend more time with their families, and care for aging parents more than married people.
It’s truly sad that thirty something women that are single consider themselves to be “losers” because they’re single. They feel this way no matter how successful they are professionally. There are documented studies that show couples living together live longer than single people, although that’s attributed to all the high levels of oxytocin in the cohabiting couples.
Now, for some people, marriage is a wonderful thing. If you’re a loyal person who is in love with another loyal person, marriage is a great idea for you. Neither of you is going to even think of straying. People like this flourish in marriage more than when they’re single.
Other people aren’t quite so successful at handling monogamy. Some just don’t handle it well at all while others will remain loyal even though they’re not all that happy about it. If you’re part of this group, you may consider whether or not a traditional marriage is for you.
Before you marry someone, ask yourself why you’re getting married. If it’s because you think you “should,” or you want to make your mother happy, those aren’t reasons to get married. This is particularly true if you’re not positive that you’re a believer in monogamy.
If you don’t handle monogamy very well but you still want to get married, sit down with your intended and talk everything out. See if there’s a way to still get married without keeping it too traditional, but rather built more around the patterns and needs of each of you. Maybe, between the two of you, something can be worked out. You don’t have to have the same type of marriage that your parents have. Instead, you can have a marriage that’s unique to the two of you and your situation.
On the other hand, if you’ve found that you just don’t feel you can get married, don’t feel bad. Being single doesn’t mean that you have to be alone. In fact, it gives you more freedom to get out in the world and sample as many different “treats” as you want. If you find that you’re more traditional, say “yes” and walk happily down the aisle. However, if you find that you enjoy being single, enjoy your freedom without guilt!
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