I am a loner by nature. I like to be around people but only on weekends. Being in big social groups tends to tire me out. Gone are those college days when I used to be part of the herd but even then I had my boundary lines. Most of my friends knew that I wasn't into long telephone chats especially those every day phone calls that teen girls are famous for.

Those who continued to barrage me with daily calls were slowly petered out. I liked my space once home and I could never handle friendships with high maintainence people. Their constant need for attention put me on the edge after a while and I would have family members make excuses for me hoping they would get the message.

In times of crisis I go all out for my friends but in day to day life space is a big deal for me.

The extroverts that I know have a tough time sitting at home. They crave human interaction and want to be in the thick of things but people like me tend to draw energy from being at home. We putter around our homes, relax and read books , watch movies , take up creative hobbies and generally be more introspective than extroverts. According to Elizabeth Svoboda:

Loners often hear from well-meaning peers that they need to be more social, but the implication that they're merely black-and-white opposites of their bubbly peers misses the point. Introverts aren't just less sociable than extroverts; they also engage with the world in fundamentally different ways. While outgoing people savor the nuances of social interaction, loners tend to focus more on their own ideas—and on stimuli that don't register in the minds of others. Social engagement drains them, while quiet time gives them an energy boost.

The person with the gregarious personality refused to understand that there is another way of living which is perfectly healthy, that shutting yourself away from the world does not mean that one has fallen into the depressed mode or life is passing the person by.

I didn't get offended, the constant calls worrying about my mental health were met with passive aggressiveness till the person finally got the message and dropped the topic.

I am a home bird and not a socialite. I like people but only on weekends