Moderated by
Maria Wasielewski, Master of Arts in Counseling and Guidance, University of Arizona
Licensed Professional Counselor
I am inspired when working with clients, who are facing challenging life experiences, to be able to help them to develop the needed skills to live their best possible life!
Top Rated Answers
It must be understood that none of us can live in isolation. We depend on friends and family on various occasions. We do love some of them to the point where their happiness becomes ours and vice versa. You can BE happy WITH them. There's only so much one can do when alone. But the problem starts when your happiness is their validation, their constant attention, their opinions, etc.
Happiness is a state of the mind. Your life is as good as your thoughts. It's how you train yourself to think. Do the things that you enjoy doing on your own. There's a sense of tranquility that you attain when you do stuff that makes you happy alone, it's a kind of peacefulness like no other. This cannot be forced. Yet you can develop it with all the little steps you take. Find happiness with and within yourself, you'll be happy with others too.
You have yourself! This may sound weird but honestly you are the most important person in your life. Making new friends is easier than finding a family, but nothing is impossible! You be happy with yourself and the rest will become easier.
It can be OK, you can be your own friend, you will be someone who know your mind clearly. Please do what you like and what you feel happy with, try to make your own feeling good with your own living, motivate yourself and try to think about things that make you happy and keep your hope of living happily..
Anonymous
October 26th, 2016 4:37pm
Do you live far away from them? Family and friends are important, no one can live without them. Everybody needs support. Try staying connected to them because they are the best gift you will ever receive.
you create your own happiness. it is all up to you. change your mindset and you will change your life.
Anonymous
September 30th, 2016 8:11pm
Find other things that make you happy, lile a hobby or something you really like doing. Happiness can be found in many different things you just have to find a way to it.
Anonymous
September 30th, 2021 11:48am
Great question, this was one I recently had to think about and my best advice from personal experience would be to set small goals which are achievable but also optimistic with a sense of achievement. By doing this you have something to work towards and therefore completing these goals will bring self satisfaction, joy and happiness. Trust me! Remember not to aim for anything over the top as this will bring dissatisfaction when you cannot achieve it.
As well as, you can try talking to people online (remember your online safety however). I personally have met some amazing people online who always make me smile and you can too.
Anonymous
September 9th, 2016 10:03am
Most of the times happiness comes from within. Even when you're all alone in the world, if you enjoy your own company and are happy with yourself you'll be happy. But if you do want to find happiness with others, sometimes friends can be found in the most unexpected places; people can become family without having any blood relations with them.
If you feel content in your own skin and if you're willing to give more to people than they can take away, you'll be happy.
Throughout life, friends and family come and go. It is important to fill your life with things that make you happy for yourself. Go out and do things that make you happy and give you a full life. Take a class, go exercise, get crafty, find a hobby or a specialist group. Friends can be found everywhere but know that you are in charge of making your own life as happy as you want it to be.
A good stroll in the morning, hearing birds chirp, sipping out the coffee from mug while sitting on the easy chair, is a pure bliss. We can find ourselves decluttering our mind and experiencing newness.
Anonymous
August 13th, 2016 9:11am
Our real sense of happiness is derived from ourselves. Coming to love ourselves for who we are, and knowing our intrinsic worth as individuals amongst the many.
Anonymous
December 9th, 2016 7:38am
Enjoying our own presence is a big step into maturity. There is a difference between being alone and feeling lonely. All you need is to identify where you stand and if you are ok to be without friends or family. There is no secret formula for hapiness. You should just find what is best for you. And if life forces you into a specific situation, just accept that and move on. In either way you are your own best friend.
Understand you’re good enough all by yourself.
You’re a valuable person, and you don’t need the approval of anyone else for that to be true. When you’re alone, remind yourself that it’s because you choose to be. It really is a choice.
It’s very easy to find someone to spend time with, but when you have high standards for the people you allow into your life, you’re telling yourself that you’re better off by yourself than with someone who isn’t a great fit for you.
Getting out in nature, enjoy what you have close by, appreciate your local wildlife, there is nothing wrong with going for a coffee on your own and reading a paper for a hour. Go out for a ride on a bike and enjoy what you see, or just watch a film, there are some good ones out there from time to time, I love to get out and see what nature has to offer though, use a camera or phone and enjoy it all, we live on a small planet that is dying make the most of what you have got
Use the time without them to focus on your own identity and your own interests. Explore a new hobby or try something new. Building experiences with the people in our lives is one of the best things we can do, but to see the excitement on someone's face when you tell them of your own experiences and then possibly even getting to do it again together. Time away isn't a punishment, it doesn't even have to be boring. Finding new crafts, games, hobbies and interests is part of being an individual. I love learning new recipes when I'm by myself. Sort of a preparation for when I see them again.
Hi! In all honesty, find things that excite you. If you don't have or want friends or family around, then there's no one there to knock you down! Whether it be a hobby like composing or germinating fungal spores or breeding freshwater aquatics, or a particular show or book series, you have all the time to fully engross yourself in it without someone's vexing judgement hanging over your head! Don't be afraid to experiment with anything and everything constantly to find what suits the ever-evolving you. I'd hope you don't get lonely, as some force themselves into isolation without wanting to, but if that's not your case then go all out, my friend. Maybe get a small pet, like a fish or axolotl to keep you company (can you tell freshwater biology is my hobby?) or have another positive presence nearby. Best of luck!
I’m hearing that you think you have to have friends and family to BE happy. I can understand how you might feel that way. But you can absolutely be happy!
Getting there isn’t easy. But you can do it! You have to be happy internally with yourself. It’s a process. Get comfortable with being by yourself, enjoy your time.
There’s a difference between being alone and being lonely. Not having friends or family doesn’t mean you have to be lonely and unhappy.
Practice being confident and OK with not having family and friends. Practice displaying that internal confidence, and I bet your happiness will come automatically. And I even bet that it will draw people to you.
Anonymous
August 1st, 2021 10:09pm
Learn and practise a hobby. Also appreciate nature, wildlife, and your environment. I’ve found walking in my local park helps to ease my emotions and appreciate life beyond my lack of friends and family. I also go swimming and eat healthy to improve myself. Volunteering is also a great way to feel happy, online or in person. I’ve started volunteering at a charity shop and it is very rewarding knowing I’m helping those in need. Whilst I’m volunteering I like to make small talk with strangers and try to make a lasting positive impact to those who visit the shop.
Anonymous
May 15th, 2019 8:08pm
You can be happy. But not truly happy. You'll still feel as if something is missing, or there's a void that needs to be filled. But guess what, you can be happy by doing nice things for yourself, like exercising, meditation, reading a nice novel. Going shopping, things like that. But being happy without friends and family, let's admit that's really hard, as we need the people around us that we care about the most, the ones that can support us and be there. Without them the world is a lonely place. So to answer your question, you can't be happy without friends and family.
Create a list of goals, beliefs, or things (and even other people you meet along your way) that matter most in your life. The goals can range from something physical like a desire to get in shape to something not-so-physical like dedicate time and space each day to introspect. Even if you're not religious, it's always good to have a list of beliefs to adhere by. Of course, a particular religion may have some of these already outlined for you, but feel free to create your own (within reason), like "I will do nothing that my grandma won't like." Also, find some motivators to better help you focus on these goals. Do it for your dog. Do it for the people around you. Do it for a better future-- do it for yourself. Then, strive to accomplish the snot out of those things however you can.
Happiness can be found in so many ways it could include small things such as being able to help others and be a reason for someone to smile, for such acts could be fulfilling to our souls and makes us an individual with a purpose.
Other than that, happiness could also be found in the different things that excite us and things that we are genuinely passionate about whether it be through singing, painting, etc.
In conclusion, happiness is indefinite, it is up to us as an individual to define happiness considering the fact that we are all different which means that what makes other people happy is different from what makes you happy.
Anonymous
October 28th, 2019 5:30pm
It can be hard to be happy without any reliable biopsychosocial support of family, friends, mental health clinician, counsellor, physician, teacher, colleague, etc. The fact that you are attempting to be happy irrespective of them is incredibly strong of you as many people cannot do it. You've got to have a lot of self-discipline in that case and work on bettering yourself doing the activities that you like. By bettering yourself, you will become more self-confident and others may approach you because they can sense it as well.
It is usually easier to be happy when you have at least one person (maybe an online gaming buddy or a pet) that can support you during times of need. If you do not have anyone, you can always fall back on your personal interests like your favourite music, talking to anyone on 7 Cups, etc.
Anonymous
December 21st, 2019 8:47pm
Who says you can not be happy without friends or family? Happiness is not about people. It is about you, your inner self. Happiness is an emotion and like every emotion it comes from within. Firstly, you need to be at peace with your own self. Many extroverts have many friends and big and rich families but they still feel unhappy. While, an introvert may not have many or any friends but he/she can be happy because he is satisfied.
Just stay away from negativity. Accept and love yourself. Do thing you like. Try to be a better person. Help people around you even strangers. Put a smile on others face and it will automatically come on your own. That is what you need to be truly happy.
Anonymous
July 9th, 2021 4:48pm
Everything we do in this life, we do for ourselves. We can be happy even we have to do that alone. Your life is imoortant, so don't thinking the way people judge yourlife. But sometimes relations in this life is important so we can build connection to each others. We life in this world is to know each others, to make friends. We life in this world to be a family. Friends and family become a important of the life, family is the connection to your past and future, and your friends is a connection make you just like this.
Anonymous
November 22nd, 2019 8:46pm
Without friends and family, you need to love yourself. loving yourself is all that really matters. without loving yourself how can you love or be friendly to others? love is a very strong and independent emotion. anyone can have love or maybe not have love. either way show love the best way you can. You may think its hard but just sink into the thought of love and carry forward with it.
Anonymous
November 10th, 2019 9:59pm
You can be happy by Being your #1 fan! Self love is the best love. Yes you will need friends and family but at then end of the day you only got yourself. Do things that make you happy:) friends and family are the most judgmental/ supportive people in your life. Although they will always be there for you they don’t always support your decisions/ the things that make you happy. As I stated before, do what makes you happy!!!! You are the only person you can count on and you are the only person that understands how YOU are feeling. Not everyone is going to agree with you.
As for someone who has no family, and a very few friends. I find myself valuing the quality of the people I keep in life over how many people I can have in my life. What is important for introverts is to explore your own self and discover passions that can help being you to communities whether they are online groups or social groups. The older you get, the more you realize life is not about being the most popular but about making and exploring life how you want it to be. You got this, don't worry too much about making a lot of friends and just focus on making some really strong friendships.
Having a good relationship with self is the key important factor in leading a good and content life. No matter what life throws at you, you will remain strong. You will be your own rock.
Do some creative, it seems difficult very difficult very difficult but just start doing random if you like to paint read watch movies, talking to friends , take your dog or cat on walk ( have none go to nearest shelter and take any of them on a walk they would love a walk with you as nobody takes them), Cook or bake whatever cook whatever find a hardest 1 hour recipe and start doing it you never know you might be a chef ( i turned into in a lonely city miles away from my country ), just do something which you always wanted to do but could never do it
Anonymous
August 17th, 2019 2:49am
Family can be biological or chosen. So just because we might not have a strong biological connection, doesn’t mean we went surrounded by those who love us and we choose to have as family. So if really comes down to how we define family. Being away or feeling as though we also don’t have friends us hard. Luck thing is we often have the opportunity to make more or new friends. Most importantly we find happiness within our selves. When we are happy with who we are, other tend to be attracted to us and making friends becomes natural.
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