How to Survive Thanksgiving With Family When You’re Single

Thanksgiving is, for many, one of the few times in the year to get together with family, especially with extended family that you rarely see. But it can often turn into a stressful experience for many singles who aren’t used to fielding questions about their love life, or lack of one.

Do you dread having to explain to Aunt Sofie why a smart and beautiful prince or princess like yourself still hasn’t found the right one?

Are you tired of hearing Sister-in-Law Allison explain how important it is to just settle for a nice stable guy instead of holding out for that perfect love you’ve been dreaming of (of course, she didn’t settle. Right.)?

Do you end up spending the entire evening with your 5 year old niece simply to avoid the conversation that inevitably will will shift to trying to analyze the reasons for your single status?

If you answered yes to any or all of the above, you’re not alone. Does that make you feel any better? I didn’t think so.

The infuriating part of all of this is that you’re totally ok with being single. In fact, you’re pretty darn happy with your life.

Sure you’d like to be in a loving and committed relationship, or at the very least dating someone special. But it’s not your reality at the moment. You’re cool with that.

So why let other people bring you down? If they’re not ok with your singlehood, should that effect how you feel about yourself? No way!

The only way someone can make you feel bad about yourself is if you give them the control and power to do so. If you’re insecure about yourself or your ability to meet someone, you’ll let all those well intended comments, questions and nuggets of wisdom make you feel even worse.

But if you’re confident about your abilities and happy with your status, nothing that anyone can say can get you down.They can’t touch you because you haven’t given them the power to do so. You are the master of your domain.

Bottom line: If you’re happy with your life and your relationship status, walk into that Thanksgiving feast with your head and confidence level held high and field those nosy relationship questions with a smile and a polite deflection: I’d really rather not discuss that stuff right now. Smile.

Enjoy Thanksgiving, and don’t let anyone bring you down!

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