When did you live alone for the first time?

I’ve never lived alone. Always with family, roommates, my husband, and now our family of three. I have some friends who are a little younger than me who live alone and constantly stress about being single and childless in their twenties and I’m like “OMG CHERISH IT.” One of my few regrets in life is that I never lived alone when I was young. I wish I had done it even for a year.

Age 21: Lived alone for my senior year of college, although my then fiance visited weekends as did my younger sister who was in her freshman year of college (our parents had moved out of state so when she came "home" she came to my apartment. Got married just before my 22nd birthday.

Age 31: Got divorced right around my 31st birthday and lived on my own for the next 5 years. Although, for about 8 months before the divorce my husband was working for a government agency over 1200 miles away and I only saw him for a week during that 8 months, which was the week we decided to divorce. He and I didn't have kids.

Moved back in with my mother when I moved cities and was looking for a place of my own (age 36), but then started dating my now husband and moved in with him before we got married. I love my husband and son, but I daydream about living alone again sometimes. Especially when we were all home all the time for the pandemic in 2020. I needed "reset/recharge" alone time and I wasn't getting it. It's just who I am. It's still a struggle right now actually because my husband is still working from home although I went back to the office. My alone time is my commute time right now.

I've lived on my own since I was 20. I had roommates in college from 18-20.

I had never lived alone until I moved from my parents' house (where I'd gone back to after college) to a little village in Burkina Faso, West Africa. lol. I tend to do things to extreme. haha Although, the communal nature of living in as African compound isn't really "living alone" like in your own apartment here.

After the Peace Corps I moved to DC and after doing the group house thing (ugh) I found an efficiency apartment. As an introvert I remember how lovely that was after the group house! I was working full time and taking graduate classes at night, and I still remember how wonderful it was to come home after work or school and shut the door behind me.

I was 41 when my youngest son moved out. I was sad at first and did not know what to do with myself. Now, I love it!

I’ve never lived alone. Moved out of my parents’ house on my 18th birthday, couch surfed for a couple of weeks until my then-boyfriend turned 18 and we could get a place. Married him, had a couple kids and a lot of years later here we are.

Ds21 is talking about getting an apartment in the fall with his girlfriend….I have no issue with her or with them living together but I wish I could convince him to live alone or with a roommate for a year or two just for the experience.

I had a private dorm room junior and senior year but I’m not sure that counts. Other than brief periods between roommates, I don’t think I’ve ever actually lived alone.

Moved out of my parents house upon high school graduation at 18, had a sporadic series of roommates until 19, then bought my first house. It was a stilt house and built an apartment on the bottom, lived there alone and rented the upstairs house. Finished undergrad, worked for a while, sold that place, bought another house and and lived alone there until 34 years old. Then future D/H moved in.

Even if the other person is kind and easy to be with, to me living alone is my preference.

I moved out of my parents house into my own house at 24... alone. Then I moved into another house... alone. So yeah basically my entire adult life I have lived alone. I would not know what to do with myself if someone else lived here with me.

I first lived alone when I was 17 1/2.

Moved out at 18
Lived with roommates and then lived in with my boyfriend that became my husband.

I’ve never lived alone.

I properly lived alone when I was 42 after splitting up from my Ex DH. But he travelled a lot whilst we were together so I had often spent weeks being in the house on my own. He worked in Italy for 4 years so we lived over there. When I was 38 I spent a year living on my own in the UK as my mum had cancer, so I wanted to be close to her. Ex DH often came to my house for the weekend though so I don’t know if you’d count that as living on my own.

I have never lived alone. But as much as I love my husband, at times I feel like renting an AirBnB for a couple of weeks to have time to myself. Lol! My mom went through a phase like this at around my age and after losing my dad, she tells me how much she hates being alone and how much she misses my dad. So sometimes things look greener on the other side of the fence. But I actually crave time to myself to recharge. I think it’s a balance.

I moved out of family home when I married and have never lived alone.