I like to go out with friends. I like going to dinner, going to see a movie, and I obviously loved this past Thanksgiving and spending time with family (though honestly, it was mostly for the food). I like spending time with people and meeting people, experiencing life.

But I thrive off of spending time alone (or with small amounts of people -- I'm talking one or two other people). After social events or gatherings, I am exhausted. I like to spend my time sitting in my room watching Netflix or reading a book with a cup of tea (preferably with a stormy day, but beggars can't be choosers). I love my friends -- but I feel my best when I'm comfortable and alone. Like I said, sometimes spending time with two or three people has the same effect -- but spending hours on end amongst a group of people larger than the amount of friends I actually have drains me. A lot of people have the same experience as mine, feel the same way.

But, this is not about my being an introvert. Plenty of people are introverts.This is for the people who find that they are never alone or without groups of people.

I think that it's healthy to spend some time alone. I can understand where it could be fun to be with people all the time, the person-to-person contact. But, I think it's important to just spend some time with yourself.

Take a day to be alone. Go outside and explore nature. Discover if you even like nature. Eat lunch by yourself. Do you even know if you truly like salad? Go find out without needing to talk to people. Find out if you like poetry. If none of that sounds appealing, then just spend a day to watch Netflix by yourself. Either way, make sure to spend time with yourself.

Learn about who you are. Especially in college and going into adulthood, we really don't have things figured out, despite what we like to present to the world. Spending time alone, figuring out who you are, is especially important right now. Learn about who you are, what you like, who you want to be, before you try to be someone you don't know or even don't like. I don't think that becoming a recluse and never speaking to anyone for the rest of your life is the way to go, but I'm saying that you need to take a couple days a year to be alone (or when it's time, spend a day with your dog or cat).

I'm an introvert. I thrive on being alone, spending time by myself. There are some people who thrive on social interaction, person-to-person contact all the time. Maybe I need to spend more time with big groups of people; it may do good for me. It's also essential to growing as a person to spend time with yourself. Get to know yourself, and you'll grow in your relationships. But make sure to go out with your friends later!