Contents:
- Medical Video: The lethality of loneliness: John Cacioppo at TEDxDesMoines
- 1. Loneliness can arise even when you are surrounded by friends and family
- 2. Many elderly people are lonely
- 3. Loneliness can be "contagious"
- 4. Lonely people are susceptible to disease
- 5. Loneliness can be eliminated and prevented
Medical Video: The lethality of loneliness: John Cacioppo at TEDxDesMoines
There are times when you feel no one can understand, listen, appreciate, or support you. That was when loneliness arose. Loneliness is a problem that can actually be overcome. Even in certain countries such as Britain, loneliness is considered a public health problem that must be handled directly by the government.
Actually, what is meant by loneliness? Why do many public health experts classify loneliness as an epidemic? Come on, find out the subtleties of loneliness and how to overcome them below.
1. Loneliness can arise even when you are surrounded by friends and family
Loneliness does not only occur in people who live alone. Loneliness is feeling disconnection of your relationship with friends, family, or social environment. Loneliness can also describe the feelings of someone who feels that no one else can understand him. In addition, people who are lonely also do not have relationship with other people which can make him feel needed or wanted.
Loneliness can be caused by someone being exiled, but that is not the most influential factor. You can feel lonely even though you are surrounded by friends and family every day. The reason is, if you are not too close or have no strong ties with these people, you can still feel lonely.
2. Many elderly people are lonely
Increasing age, people will be increasingly busy with their respective activities so that they interact less frequently with the closest people who are also equally busy. There are also many elderly people who have not had many activities and people around them like children and grandchildren rarely come to visit. This is what invites the emergence of loneliness in parents.
Even so, loneliness can still haunt everyone, regardless of how old he is. It's just that loneliness in the elderly is more worrying because it will greatly affect health. Elderly people are susceptible to various complaints about health due to the aging process. When seasoned with loneliness, the elderly may find it more difficult to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
3. Loneliness can be "contagious"
This fact about loneliness you might not have thought. Yes, loneliness can be "contagious" from one person to another as an epidemic. Susan Newman, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and author of Parenting An Only Child said that friends and family of people who feel lonely have a 52 percent greater chance of experiencing loneliness.
4. Lonely people are susceptible to disease
Did you know that lonely people are susceptible to disease? Yes, some studies have found that feeling lonely can increase risk heart disease and stroke. One third of lonely people are also prone to lower blood pressure than people who feel happy because they are surrounded by friends or family.
It was also found that the suspicion of research that people who were lonely basically had already had poor health conditions. So, not infrequently they even withdraw from their environment so that they finally feel lonely.
Loneliness can also make someone more indifferent to health. For example, you often stay up late and sleep less, eat carelessly, addiction to alcohol, smoke more often, or are lazy to move. This is what ultimately threatens public health.
5. Loneliness can be eliminated and prevented
Even though loneliness can harm physical and mental health, this can be overcome. Unlike mental illnesses such as depression or bipolar disorder, loneliness is basically temporary. Loneliness can actually be a signal for you to find new friends or deepen your relationship with those closest to you.
Loneliness can be overcome by the awareness of yourself who really wants to make changes. Here are some ways to prevent and repel loneliness:
- Realize that loneliness is a sign that something needs to be changed in your life.
- Understand the impact of loneliness on your life. Both physically, mentally, and financially.
- To overcome loneliness, join a new community or contribute to social activities so that your social circle becomes wider.
- Focus on strengthening relationships with people who share your views, interests and values.
- Optimistic minded. Lonely people often fear that they will be rejected when they meet new people. Instead of thinking about things that aren't certain, it's better to focus on trying to get out of a lonely black hole.
