Alone But Not Lonely

An emerging body of research is suggesting that spending time alone can be good for us. Just as regular exercise and healthy eating make our minds and bodies work better, solitude, experts say, so can being alone. Sherry Turkle, director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self, makes the case for people to mindfully set aside time everyday when they are not engaged in so-called "social snacking" activities like texting, g-chatting, and talking on the phone. "People make this error, thinking that being alone means being lonely, and not being alone means being with other people," John Cacioppo of the University of Chicago said. "You need to be able to recharge on your own sometimes. Part of being able to connect is being available to other people, and no one can do that without a break."

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