Are you one of those who can never imagine living without your spouse or family? Wake up to the health benefits of living alone! Okay, I have no intention of separating you from your folks, so I'd rather break the good news to those who fall in my league of lone residents!

Yes, living all by yourself does not necessarily mean loneliness and depression. It has a positive side, too... Absolute peace of mind. No one to nag and yell. Freedom to choose your own lifestyle. Sounds good? That's not all.

"The positive side of living alone lies in the fact that one can stay calm and relaxed and optimize one's potential to achieve his or her primary life goals, whereas a family or spouse can often crowd a person's thoughts and leave no room for concentration", says Dr Shahzaad Ali, psychologist and mental health expert. "People who live alone are more focused and unidirectional in their thinking... they have the freedom to make the best decisions for themselves and can give 100 per cent to life. Living alone is a feel good state in itself", he adds.

What's more, those who live alone also tend to stay physically fitter. "Such persons can give more time to themselves. They have more time to workout and pamper themselves. Also, functional capacity improves, as one can't ask her husband to lift a suitcase or help with another task", says fitness expert Kiran Sawhney.

This self-reliance also leads such people to regulate their routine, contrary to the popular live-alone-live-lazy belief. "Certainly, living alone induces a certain discipline as one needs to make sure all chores get done on time", she reinforces.

Living on your own may also be the best answer to awaken your dormant creativity, which often gets stifled as a result of little freedom of expression that a typical family life allows. Leading psychiatrist Dr Sanjay Chugh agrees. "Living alone can induce a state of blissful solitude. In such a case, a person is not a function of anyone else's thoughts and actions. There is no over-involvement from the spouse and so this helps in introspection and self realization", he says, which is an important part of the creative process.

Since putting up alone does not imply lack of communication with friends and family, 'isolation' is a mere myth that surrounds this way of life. Parties and sleepovers, coffee dates, mobile conversations, busy days at work and internet chatting are all ways to overcome that occasional emptiness. "After I had a divorce, the thought of living alone scared me. They said it would be painful and difficult. But it's been over a year now and living with myself has liberated me in beautiful ways", says 32-year-old Nitika Chand, a Gurgaon based entrepreneur.

So, whatever the reasons behind your 'sole dweller' status, I recommend that you stop cribbing and start discovering what a fulfilling experience it can be!