Living As A Single Woman: 5 Odd Things People Don’t Know

What does it feel like living as a single woman alone? I have been living alone since 2019, and I think I know a little bit about living alone, especially having survived the pandemic living alone as well. 

As I write this on a peaceful Sunday morning, March 9th, 2025, I’m 36 years old. The house is still and quiet, with only the soft chirping of birds in my garden breaking the silence. Outside, the rain taps rhythmically against the walls, its sound echoing through the air. I sit comfortably in my chair, sipping on a warm cup of herbal tea, as the gentle hum of my laptop fills the room. The voice-to-text feature on my computer makes it effortless to type these thoughts out.

As peaceful as it may sound, let’s dive into the 5 things that people don’t really know about what it feels like to live alone, for example, the fact that my childhood friend got married today, and my parents attended yet another wedding, probably with loads of questions running through their mind about mine.

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My Experience

Living as a single woman alone was a circumstance that I learned how to make peace with over the years, especially after my brother moved out after his wedding when I was 30 years old. 

It was unexpected, and I made the choice to keep the house that we were living in together before he moved out. At least I thought that this was temporary and I would move out of this house soon after finding somebody to live with.

It’s been close to 6 years now, and I would definitely admit that it is a lot more peaceful than living with the wrong person. However, there are just a lot of moments in our lives when we think about stuff that people with families would probably never have to think about even once in their lives. 

At first, I refused to invest in this house in terms of renovation and getting security cameras fixed or even beautifying the living room. This is because I still remember vividly that I told my friend I did not want to invest in this house and be attached to this house because then it would be difficult for me to detach myself from this house and move out of it if I found my forever person.

Then, there were moments of absolute difficulties that came along with the pandemic, and I lost my sense of self when I was dying for human connection. Being single just made it even harder because you don’t have anybody to connect with daily, even if it is just virtually. 

I had to call my parents to the rescue when I was just too depressed and not sure what to do, trying to fill the emptiness by chasing after people who are emotionally unavailable and just trying to figure out how to make this work.

Six years later, I am not sure if I will find my person soon enough and what the future holds for me, but I can finally say that it hurts a little less, and I have made peace with embracing the uncertainties in life. Probably, this is what faith looks like.

Six years later, I absolutely love my living room, and I invested a bit in the interior design. No regrets at all! I have a beautiful mini garden, and the bees made their hives there and gave me honey! What else can I ask for?

It’s just that sometimes, I wish I had someone to crash with on my couch. Someone who wants to share his life with me. 

Nobody to cook for, nobody to clean after, nobody tells me what to do and what not to do. But also, nobody to check on me if I slip and fall in the bathroom, not being able to get up. Is this freedom or loneliness? You decide. This is what living as a single woman alone looks like.

Living As a Single Woman: 5 Facts People Don’t Know

1. We Think About Who Inherits Our Wealth

To be honest, I shifted my focus on my career starting last year, and I am no longer obsessed about my relationship status. Obviously, I have been trying to diversify my income, and I have also been thinking a lot about investments. Primarily, I just want to be debt-free as soon as possible. I shared this with my newsletter subscribers. 

However, I have not really decided who’s gonna inherit my wealth because, really, being 35 and single last year, I was thinking about freezing and becoming a single mom by choice because I really wanted to have a family.

However, I realized that I actually wanted companionship more than a child. So, maybe, just maybe, if I am single on my deathbed, I would rather donate my wealth to a children’s home.

2. We Fear Dying Alone

We all need someone to grow old with, and I think we do not want to die alone.

Who wants to be left alone in an old folks home not having a family to take care of us? But perhaps, I really think that maybe family is just somebody that you choose, and that is how people home are living happily ever after. Have you ever heard of stories where all people who get married?

3. We Don’t Have An Emergency Contact

This is really something that not many people realize about living as a single woman alone. For married people, the emergency contact will usually be the spouse. Children usually rely on their parents until they are out of their house. 

But, if you are living alone and if we are immediate family members are just not living with you in the same town as you, who the heck are you going to rely on as an emergency contact? I still do not know the answer to it.

4. We Don’t Know Who Will Cry When We Die

So, I just attended the funeral of my cousin’s mother, who passed away a few weeks ago, and we saw a few immediate family members attending the funeral, including my cousin and my uncle. Not forgetting, the grandchildren as well. 

Living as a single woman alone makes me question a lot about who’s gonna really appreciate my presence or absence in this world. Who will cry when we die?

5. We Don’t Have Someone To Talk About Our Day

Did your day go well? You don’t have anybody to talk to about it. Are you having a bad day? You also do not have anybody to talk to about it.

Sometimes, you tend to scroll through your contact list trying to see who you can reach out to in order to nurture the connection so that you have somebody to talk to and somebody to just share your life with, even if it is friends.

Did I tell you about how we have to be super mindful about calling somebody or even texting somebody because we feel obligated to seek permission and be mindful about how we are asking for time from people? Because after all, they are not our people.

Advice For Single Women Living Alone

Living as a single woman alone can be made a little bit better if you are mindful of all these things that I’m going to share with you below. If you have questions, please email me here, and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

1. Make Commitments With Friends

I think this is easier with men because I’ve seen a lot of men having strong friendships even if they are married. The problem with single women, even if they have friends, is that they don’t seem to prioritize friendship more than their relationships with family members. So, you need to make a commitment with friends. 

You cannot be friends with people who are going to be there for you once in a blue moon, something like people reaching out to you once a year to wish you “Happy Women’s Day”. I recently met my High School senior during the TimeLeft event dinner, and I have spoken about it on my timeleft review post here. It was a pleasant surprise to learn that she is also single and she lives quite near my place.

We need single women or single people who are going to prioritize friendship as much as they prioritize other forms of relationships. This is because you will also end up lonely if you have friends who are not gonna make you feel like you are less alone.

2. Look Into Your Insurance Coverage 

Well, this is seriously something that I have been wanting to do, and I am going to purchase a course that teaches Malaysians how to pick the right insurance coverage. I have been insured by an insurance for more than 10 years right now but to be honest, I don’t even know what this is sufficient.

When you are living alone and you pretty much know that you are reliant on your own income as a single person, it is very crucial to check on your insurance coverage because you do not want to end up in an emergency room, learning that you do not have sufficient insurance coverage. That would definitely add up to your financial burden.

3. List Down Emergency Contacts

I can’t stress this enough, but if you have been in a situation that requires immediate assistance, then you know how important this is, especially when you’re living alone. I am living in a high-rise building, and I have made it a point to be active in the community. I do know a few people in my building.

I have the numbers with me, and especially if there’s something suspicious going on in my block, at least I have somebody’s number and I can get in touch with them to help check on my house. 

On top of that, you also need somebody that you can call when you really have an emergency like a car accident or something like that. This is when your friends would come in handy and it is important to have good friends who are living in your city.

Just make good friends with people around you and, at least you have them when you need them the most. I’m sure you have heard of people saying that your neighbors are as important as your family members.

4. Live With Your Solo Friends

Why live alone when you can live with your solo single friends? Have you ever heard of the concept of co-living? At least, you can crash at your friend’s place once in a while, and that would make your life feel less lonely. This is the reason why friends are very important if you are living as a single woman alone.

If you can make an arrangement to live with them permanently, that would be fantastic, and you guys can do just about anything together. However, I do realize that this comes with a bit of hesitation because what if one of you finds a different person and needs to move out? Probably, this is going to feel difficult because, of course, you are attached to one another.

But, cherish the moments that you have right now, and live for the moment. This was exactly how I felt when my brother moved out of my house after you’ve got married.

5. Home For Single People   

I was just talking about the concept of co-living, where you live with other people in a house. Well, I guess this is just a fancy name for renting out a room where the others. Whatever that is, you get the point, right? It’s just a home for single people and people who need company to come together to live with each other.

With the rise in the number of single people around the world, this is definitely going to be a trend in the near future. So, why not embrace it ahead of the trend and try co-living for yourself?