Advantages and Disadvantages of Living Alone

       Approximately one third of households in the UK consist of a single person living alone. This is far less than Sweden, which tops the single occupancy list at 49%, and far more than India who at a mere 3% represents the opposite extreme. In terms of the UK's own history the current 34% represents a significant increase against the 12% recorded at the start of the 1960s.

       There are lots of factors contributing to this change, clearly there is a relationship between societal affluence and solo households. Other factors include our changing life expectancies, increase in divorce rates. To some extent an increase in the options open to all of us, and a reduction of our willingness to compromise also contributes to the rise in single households.

       It's these varying factors that lead to solo living which make it so hard to define what it actually means to the person involved. To the young single woman with reasonable financial resources, living alone means the freedom to dance naked around the lounge, to come home at hours of her choosing, to maintain the friendships of her choice. To the elderly widow or widower, maybe dependant on a small pension, it can mean loneliness, isolation and a dread of the next bill coming through the letterbox.

       Of course it's when illness or injury strikes that those living alone are at there most vulnerable. Anyone who's ever tried to wash their own hair with one arm in a sling can attest to the frustrations involved in doing the simplest task alone, when affected by even a relatively minor and fast healing injury.

       Whether living alone from choice or necessity, single people will rely more on friendships and community ties than those who live within a family. Many choose to keep pets, either in preference to human companionship or as a consolation for the lack of it.

       Of course pets also bring responsibility. You could be the independent, economically secure 30 something year old, proud owner of a pedigree pooch, or the 70 something widower with a much loved elderly mongrel. Either way, if you should be unfortunate enough to have an accident the question may well arise of who can take my dog for a walk?

       Sometimes you may be able to enlist the help of a friend or neighbour. If not, or if you'd rather hand the task over to a professional you can easily find dog walking Notting Hill. One advantage of using a professional dog walker is that you will also be building a relationship between your dog and an individual who could also look after them in your own home if ever you want or need to be away for a while.

       21st century life brings new challenges and new opportunities. The one thing that's for certain is that as the ways we live change, so the ways in which we care for ourselves and each other also continues to evolve.