– Part 2 of our series with the ZSS has been published –
Some people wish to have someone around them daily. For others, a long phone call once a week is enough. Both are normal, and neither says much about how fulfilling a life is. This is precisely where the second part of our series for the Association of Zurich Senior Women and Men, which has now been published, comes in.
Closeness Knows No Right Amount
Someone who needs time for themselves is not automatically lacking something. And someone who desires company is not needy. The decisive factor is not the quantity, but whether it suits one’s own life. And this quantity may change: someone who has been among people every day for decades might first enjoy the peace after retirement and only later realize that something is missing. This is not a U-turn, but a normal development.
Being Together Without Living Together
The figures also show that connectedness and independence are not mutually exclusive. According to the 2021 Family Report by the Federal Statistical Office, 13 percent of 25- to 80-year-olds in a partnership do not share a household. Among those over 65, this figure is 6.8 percent. Sometimes this has practical reasons, sometimes it is a conscious decision. And more than a third of all private households in Switzerland consist of a single person.
Why This Also Matters When Getting to Know Someone
Those who have clarified for themselves how much closeness and how much personal space suits their own life can address this early and calmly. Not as a condition, but as honest information. This spares both parties disappointments that no one intended.
The article also discusses how the rhythm of daily life changes after retirement, what shifts when a life together ends, and why closeness and personal space usually belong together instead of being in opposition.
Read Part 2: Closeness, Independence, and New Life Stages
If you missed Part 1: It was about why new encounters remain important in old age and why being alone is not the same as loneliness.
Two hearts. One path.
Warm regards
Valentin & Alex
