The holidays are a time full of love and family. We spend time with the people we might not see much for the rest of the year, doing things we wouldn’t normally do, and spending more money than we do the rest of the year combined. Truly, it’s a time to rejoice, even if you don’t actually celebrate the holiday season.

While I tend to be the romantic type, I can see reasons why some women might prefer to spend their holidays alone. It’s easier, to be sure – and even cheaper. But how many of these reasons can you personally identify with?

1. You’ll save money.

Most people spend a great deal of money on their partner for the holiday season. Of course, this doesn’t apply to everyone, but for many people, the idea of not buying their partner an extravagant gift is completely unheard of. I know personally, I tend to spend “too much” during the holiday season – I’m a bit of a workaholic, and it’s easy to use gifts to show my love. But if you’re single during the holiday season, you’re less likely to buy worthless junk just to make someone else happy.

2. You won’t have to share your blankets.

Cuddling underneath the blankets is great, but sometimes you just want to be a bed hog. If you’re single, this is perfectly acceptable. (Most ladies don’t appreciate sharing a bed with someone who doesn’t want to share the blankets.) As nice as cuddling feels, there’s something so nice about being able to swaddle yourself in every blanket you own.

3. You can do as you please – no one to answer to!

This isn’t specific to the holiday season, but when you’re single, you don’t have to justify your actions to anyone (well, maybe your family, if yours is anything like mine). This means you’re free to do whatever you please, without worrying about whose feelings you’re going to hurt. Of course, you should do your best not to be inconsiderate, even if you’re single, but you’re under no obligation to consider the opinions of people you’re not involved with.

4. You don’t have to cook if you don’t want to.

If you’re in a relationship, someone’s going to have to make the holiday dinners. Maybe it’ll be a family member, but often, everyone involved will participate somehow. This means that, if you’re not spending it with your family, you’ll have to cook something. If you spend the holidays by yourself, you can have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for Christmas dinner if that’s all you feel like making – who’s going to stop you?

5. You don’t have to listen to your parents complain about your choices.

Sometimes, parents want better for us than what we accept for ourselves. I know I’ve had past partners who weren’t fully accepted by my family, and the holidays are a time when we’re more likely to hear everything that’s wrong with the person we’re with. This can be incredibly uncomfortable sometimes. If you’re single, you don’t have anyone to present to your family – so the risks of this person being judged are non-existent.

6. Parents don’t have someone to share embarrassing stories with.

Is it just me, or do our parents collect a wealth of embarrassing childhood stories that they just can’t wait to tell our partners? When you collect all of your family and your girlfriend in one place, there’s bound to be some stories you don’t want shared. But if there’s no girlfriend to embarrass you in front of, the stories aren’t so embarrassing, now are they?

7. Because single-dom means freedom.

The holidays, as well as relationships, are full of expectations. When you’re single, you have less expectations on your shoulders, which for many can be a huge relief. This is especially true if your family imposes a great deal of expectations on their own. Why would you want them to put their expectations on someone else, too?

Of course, none of this is meant to imply that you should dump your girlfriend just because the holiday season is upon us. That’s generally considered mean. But for those who are considering entering a relationship just so they’re not alone during the holidays, I strongly urge you to reconsider!

Relationships are a lot of hard work, and the strain of the holidays can be hard enough without the extra pressure of a new love. Don’t add the extra stress to yourself if there’s not a good reason for it.

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