[Simon & Schuster] An engaging, practical guide through the promises and paradoxes of solitude, offering science-backed advice for getting the most out of your alone time and deepening your relationship with yourself and others. Solitude is part of the human experience. But just like other relationships, your relationship with solitude can be satisfying, intimate, and enhance your well-being, or it can leave you wanting, stuck in a cycle of sadness, anxiety, or anger. Regardless of whether you're starved for “me time” or struggling with loneliness, most of us have never thought carefully about how to get the most out of the time we spend by ourselves. As a result, we’re missing out on what could be a deeply enriching aspect of our lives. But how can we unlock the positive power of solitude? In The Joy of Solitude, Robert Coplan draws from diverse fields including psychology, neuroscience, literature, and sociology to guide readers through solitude’s many dimensions and its pr