Dallas County Living Well Magazine July/August 2016

Solitude W By Julia Alvira, MD, MBA e live in a busy world with constant movement. There’s not a stop sign anywhere letting us know that it’s time to take a break. Let’s be honest, even if there was, we tend to get busy with other things, including electronics. We’re so glued to our electronic devices that there are people who sleep with their cell phone under the pillow. According to writer Thai Nguyen (2015), smartphone users check their device every 6.5 minutes. How crazy is that? There is a constant juggling of priorities. As much as we enjoy the company of others, there are times when we have to be by ourselves. Do we make the time? Sadly, we don’t. The idea is not to cut people from our lives and get isolated or stop enjoying time with them and practice loneliness. I’m talking about really spending time with ourselves and disconnecting from the world for a little while. I’m talking about practicing solitude. “Without great solitude no serious work is possible.”––Pablo Picasso Solitude vs. Loneliness By definition, solitude is the state of being alone without actually being lonely because you have your own company. Author Jane Porter (2015) describes that moments of solitude, when self imposed and fully appreciated, can have profound effects on our productivity and creative thinking. This means it’s an opportunity to focus, to engage with our thoughts, perform deep thinking, soul searching, inner growth, and do some exploring from the inside out. We 38 DALLAS COUNTY Living Well Magazine | JULY/AUGUST 2016 need to understand that it’s a positive state to be in, while loneliness is a negative state. In solitude, we reconnect with ourselves and like Picasso inferred, it’s when we do our greatest work. In loneliness, we feel sad, depressed, and empty––sometimes with feelings of rejection. We can be surrounded by people and still feel sad and rejected. According to research, you need solitude in your life. Many people feel that the idea of practicing solitude is boring because there are so many things to do. They’re right. There is so much to do but we all need to feed our brains and our souls to continue the “so much to do.” Whether it’s reading a book, meditating, praying, enjoying some peaceful music, sitting outside relaxing, enjoying the view of the ocean, taking a soul searching trip alone to the mountains...solitude is about reconnecting with yourself and finding balance. Solitude Effects on Mental Health Silence makes us hear our inner voice and thoughts. Jerry Lewis, MD, a psychiatrist, presents in his 2009 article about solitude, how this form of experience with ourselves is one avenue of adult personality maturation. Amy Morin, a psychotherapist, points out that, “mentally strong people don’t fear alone time since it offers restoration and a chance for reflection.” In addition, Eric Julian Manalastas (2010) depicts in his article for The Phillipines Journal of Psychology that a moment of solitude is a subjective experience where being with ourselves without social interaction can provide freedom, creativity, intimacy, and spirituality. If all these are correct then why do so many people not practice solitude?

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