The Importance of Alone Time in Healthy Relationships
Having a partner you love and want to spend time with is wonderful. Time together is essential. It is also important to find alone time. Taking time away from a relationship can allow you to recharge. You can then return to your partner with renewed mental and emotional energy.
You can use the time apart to reconnect with friends. You can even sit and listen to music. How much time spent apart is a topic you can discuss with your partner. One suggestion offered by experts is being together in a relationship seventy percent of the time. The other thirty percent can be spent pursuing individual interests.
1. Benefits of Having Alone Time
After taking time alone, you can return to your partner rejuvenated. Encompass Connection Center states: “You’ll… be able to offer more emotionally.” Taking a break can help you replenish your emotional energy. You will have more of this energy to share. Anchor Light is a therapy practice specializing in the care of individuals, families, and couples. According to Anchor Light, “you can’t pour from an empty cup.” Spending time alone and attending to your personal needs, you provide yourself with essential resources. These are resources you can draw on to meet your partner’s needs.
Taking time alone can be a great way to check in with yourself. You can gain insight and mental clarity. You can take some time to remember who you are and what you enjoy. According to Encompass Connection Center, you can ward off “resentment, disconnection, and confusion.” You can come back to your relationship with a positive and refreshed mental outlook. You can also come back with renewed affection for the partner you love.
2. Discussing Alone Time
You may notice that your relationships has developed patterns indicating a need for alone time. For instance, you may experience conflict in your relationship. This conflict may be centered on small details that may otherwise not cause strain. You may also find that you are missing time for self-care. There may be activities you find fun that you are not making time for. Additionally, you may have friends you want to reconnect with. Anchor Light states: “Spending time with friends can help you feel more like yourself.”
Anchor Light states: “Once you know your needs, communicate them to your partner.” You can think about what an ideal alone time scenario could be for you. You may not need anything elaborate. For example, it may be refreshing to sit quietly or listen to music. According to Anchor Light, being “thoughtful and specific” is essential when discussing alone time. Along with your needs, you should also consider the stated needs of your partner.
3. Incorporating Alone Time
Perhaps you and your partner both acknowledge that time alone can bring relationship benefits. You and your partner can then decide how much alone time is needed. Anchor Light Couples, Individual, & Family Therapy offers an expert-informed suggestion. There is a specific ratio that experts in relationships mention. According to Anchor Light, you can split “time with and without your partner 70/30.” You have a total of a hundred percent of available time. Seventy percent of this time can be spent with your partner. You can spend the other thirty percent of this time separately from your partner.
Finding a Combination of Together and Alone
A productive and considerate conversation can prompt a helpful plan. You and your partner can discuss your needs. Perhaps both of you have hobbies you want to make time for. These hobbies may nurture you creatively and refresh you mentally. If so, you can give yourselves time for these beneficial activities.
In this conversation, you can renew your commitment to engaging with one another when together. Each partner may have dreams of how quality time can be spent. You can discuss ways to incorporate ideas from both partners. Generally, having this conversation can help strengthen your bond. The balance of alone time and together time that results can refresh your relationship.
