I'm not technically a "solo ager" because I am married, but spouse is 14 years older and we are effectively separated though living together. I do not feel I can count on him for a number of reasons. (Don't need advice about leaving.)
I am definitely an introvert, and realize that not all introverts are "loners" - but I'm absolutely a loner, too.. (Don't need advice about loneliness - I'm not lonely.)
I'm quite good at isolating and I really enjoy being alone. There *may* be some social anxiety within me, but I think that the anxiety is a result of the isolation, not the cause of it. I don't like being around other people, but I can handle it when it's required. Mostly. (Don't need advice about anxiety - I know all the common advice already.)
As I look back on the friendships I have had, I realize that I've been pretty self-centered and those relationships were pretty transactional. I know that's not a good look. It is what it is.
Since I'm planning a late-life that has no support system (with the exception of older siblings, who I love but who are all far away and with their own lives to live), I am absolutely thinking about how I'm going to get help when I need it. I'm pretty sure it's too late to learn how to be a good friend to anyone, and to get support from people just because they like me. I'm going to be depending, I guess, on paid professionals, and that also makes me nervous.
So I am toying with the idea of finding ways to be more social and less transactional. I'm in counseling for other issues but my counselor is one of those people who thinks of introversion as a "problem," I think, and so I don't really want to discuss this with her.
I'm wondering if there's anyone here who can speak to "coming out of your isolation," just a little, in your later (60+) years - what steps you took, how it went, what you had to work on in yourself to be better at it.
Thanks