Do you feel lonely or have thoughts that you are all alone? Well you are not alone. According to the new Special Edition of Time Magazine loneliness is reaching epidemic proportions. “Loneliness is an emerging public health crisis” states Stephanie Cacioppo, an assistant professor of psychiatry and the director of the Brain Dynamic Laboratory at the University of Chicago. Loneliness is also associated with our mortality. There was a 26% jump in mortality risk associated with loneliness states Kirsten Gerst Emerson a professor of Public Health at the University of Georgia. That puts loneliness on par with smoking and obesity in its impact on a person’s risk for death.
Defining loneliness is not that easy. According to Emerson it is a very personal experience. Loneliness is perhaps a feeling of connection to something and a person who doesn’t feel connected to anyone or anything may describe this as loneliness. We all feel lonely from time to time, but it is the chronic nature of feeling lonely that becomes problematic. In terms of outwards signs of loneliness experts agree it can make people feel irritable, depressed and self-centered.
Everyone is at risk for loneliness but teens and young adults appear to be a high risk group. This is a time when people have finished school and possibly moving to a new town or starting a new job. Technology may also be associated with loneliness. A study from the University of Pittsburgh found that people ages 19-32 who spent two or more hours a day on social media were twice as likely to feel isolated. Adults older than 55 and who have reached retirement age are also at an increase for loneliness.
So what can we do about loneliness, feeling alone or disconnected? Making get togethers and spending time with family and friends a priority. Joining a book club, social group, dinner club or a sports team can reduce loneliness. The app meetup.com links people who live near one another with people who have started groups with similar interests, the meetup groups range from hiker, dog walkers, nature lovers to dining, yoga, gold tennis, car lovers, and anything in between. Another app Next Door links neighborhoods together so people can get to know what is going on in their own neighborhoods.
However, the quality of a person’s connections not the quantity seems to be significant against fighting loneliness. And the U.S. might learn from the UK who have an 800 number people can call anytime day or night if they want to chat with someone, According to Emerson until loneliness becomes a national priority loneliness with continue to rise. Finally, make it a habit to try and smile at a stranger or say hello each day, this is the first step in feeling more connected to those around us.
-Barbara Allyn Barry, M.S.Ed.,LFMT