Here’s What Spending Time Alone With Yourself Can Do

In her latest challenge, Refinery29's Lucie Fink is taking the five days she spent without a cell phone one step farther. Without a phone, laptop, or a book to keep her company, she set out on a five day challenge in, well, solitude. Recent studies have begun to refute the social stigma of spending time alone — certain activities (like going to a museum or art gallery) were even perceived as more enjoyable when done alone. In many cases, the only thing preventing you from having a fine time solo is, you guessed it, yourself. "People are fearful of doing things by themselves," Fink explains, simply because of the risk of being seen. If you've ever gone out by yourself and felt like you were on display, in a sense, you're really not alone. Everyone experiences the spotlight effect from time to time, particularly when we believe we're doing something worthy of ridicule or scrutiny. For most people, being alone anywhere in public counts as an embarrassing act. In the video above, Lucie takes a stab at just about every setting you've been anxious to visit alone, from the movies to a café to, we're not kidding, the Museum of Sex. See how the challenge goes for her and then give it a try for yourself — trust us, that spotlight isn't as bright as you think.