Are You Relishing Being One of the Single Seniors or Still Looking?

Senior singles are typically obvious; they are seen alone, sitting, reading, or doing other solo activities, not care giving their mate like senior couples are normally doing. By the time we have made it to the age to be referred to as a senior, we have read the statistics about the results of not being a part of a couple. There is an increased risk of illness or death when a spouse dies and the role of senior singles becomes a reality. There is a danger of loneliness or chronic depression among senior singles. There is a fear among senior singles of having no one to care for your well-being in old age, dying alone, losing control, being penniless, or being helpless for long periods of time. Are these simply paranoid thoughts by senior singles that rise out of an illogical place or do they have a basis in reality?

Are You Still Looking for Love?

Marketing based on looking for new love interests are a popular choice for movies, songs, and stories. Many senior singles must feel like a would-be mother who notices every pregnant woman, in the same way that every couple looks like they have an ideal relationship. However, with such high divorce rates, that is simply not the case. Many couples have failed to find the perfect relationship at any age. When a relationship is flawed, there is a feeling of being homeless, insecure, angry, hopeless, and/or depressed. Financial considerations are likely to make the situation worse. Getting in touch with your personal needs is what is if a real value is vital to senior singles. Following the lead of society – as marketing people have manipulated us to do – may not be in the best interests of senior singles. The most appropriate option is the one that makes you feel fulfilled and content – where you, and you alone find peace either as a member of the senior singles’ crowd or half of a couple. And before you jump on the senior dating scene, consider other possible scenarios…

Perhaps You Would Enjoy a Silver Lining?

One option for avoiding some of the pit-falls senior singles imagine might occur is to gather in a group situation. According to many magazines, there is a trend among “Baby Boomers” – those born between 1945 and 1963 – for more people to enjoy shared housing situations. This avenue includes co-housing, cluster housing, and more – even cruise ships living especially for senior singles. This might be a satisfactory option to becoming part of a couple. If the shared housing option was with other like-minded silver-haired single seniors – the relationship might be the “silver-lining” that makes life the most enjoyable in your senior years.

Does being single senior mean feeling lonely?

Stories that have come out of co-housing communities, especially among senior singles, include comments related to “We care about each other” and “There is always someone to help me if I need it,” or “We tend to check up on each other.” As I read this explanation, I was surprised to observe the correlation between co-housing and a marriage. The difference may be that by not being with the same person for 50 years and/or not caring for someone 24/7, there is more prompt compassion among senior singles due to their being less immediate demand for seemingly endless care-giving.

Or Simply, Go for the Gold!

The ideal relationship situation is what makes you feel the most secure, peaceful, gratified, elated, tranquil, or a multitude of other positive adjectives. Every pairing has a cost factor associated with it. The factor might be time dedicated to the person, there may be financial advantages or disadvantages, and certainly there is an emotional investment. Meditating on your life so far, and also since becoming one of the senior singles, might help to bring up the times of the most satisfying period in your life. Looking back and reading old letters or a diary could add another dimension. Asking friends, relatives, or peers what they saw as a time of the most joy could offer an outside perspective. Take in all that you learn and write it down. Don’t rush this process, because it is likely that a line of people will be waiting to join into any relationship.

There are many stories of golden years among senior singles that are filled with lots of joy, but not all end that way. My own father was a volunteer in a local hospital both before, and after my mother died. They were married nearly 45 years. He often remarked that being with sick people helped him to better realize what had the most value in his own life. He was overwhelmed at the number of women who came after him for attention, as soon as he was single. He remarried within a year of my mother’s funeral. His first marriage was far from perfect, but his second was deceitful. He was even lonelier. The woman had a pattern of marrying men dying of cancer; Dad was her fifth cancer patient husband. She isolated him from his friends and from his only child. It was a sad time in both of our lives.

This is the age of the Internet, where senior dating sites are plenty, a true blessing for senior singles. Before you even date a person, find out their background. That might help a great deal in finding the golden relationship you seek, be it alone or with others.