clearing the deck - the marriage status thread

This very much this.

I never took the time to explore because I was afraid of being alone. The most important relationship we have is with ourselves. We're taught it's all about someone else and get crushed when\if we learn opposite.
In my observation, most people can’t be alone. I would probably have been one of them but after my divorce, I also ended up losing my job, my self-esteem was totally crushed and I was too embarrassed to even try to meet anyone while unemployed & freshly divorced. So, in a way, I was forced (self-imposed?) into taking the time to heal/do some self-discovery & solidify my independence without inflicting upon/burying my unresolved issues on someone else (which is what I see most people doing in some form or another when jumping into the next thing after their relationships end).