Hi everyone. I've decided to become celibate simply because I feel that romantic relationships are too painful and cause too much stress. I haven't been sexual with anyone in more than a year, and don't intend to be so in the future. I don't really face that much temptation in my day to day life; I feel sort of as if that part of my brain has simply been shut off, though I'm not asexual. I'd rather devote my attention to other things, like my birds, my career, my hobbies, and my loved ones.

It's moreso the societal expectations that upset me. I hate that I'm seen as less of a person because I'm not in a relationship, and that my achievements and good qualities are dismissed because I'm not married or have a partner. It seems as if people view getting married as more of an accomplishment than graduating college, applying to graduate school, or holding a stable job, even though these things require more skill. Anyone can fall into a relationship and apply for a marriage license; it doesn't take any work to do so. But somehow, society has decided that this is the pinnacle of achievement. Since I'm at that time of life when everyone is getting married (I'm almost 25), I feel very alone in the world, since I've decided that this is not my path. I feel like I'm in my journey alone, and that no one understands me.