2024-10-08 03:30:13
CHARLES MONNIER
Germain tries not to think about it too much. But the feeling of loneliness with which the 21-year-old has been dealing for years always resurfaces. Even just seeing, on social networks, acquaintances spending time with friends, ” That [lui] reminds that [lui, il] doesn’t count for many people”confides the Corrézien. Since moving to high school – where his professional baccalaureate orientation in a new city took him away from his rugby friends and his family – his social interactions have reduced dramatically. The crisis due to Covid-19, which occurred during his 1st year, blunted them even more.
Today, Germain (who wished to remain anonymous, like the other witnesses) ” Fortunately “ a girlfriend with whom to share part of the week. But no close friends, “and that weighs”. “I have discussions during the day with friends or colleagues, but once it’s a weekend or vacation, no one will hear from me. It’s difficult to move forward like this: how can we have self-confidence when no one sees value in us? »he asks himself seriously. Loneliness has set in like a gigantic elephant in the room, one that he usually never talks about. “I don’t want people to take pity on me and decide to invite me out just for that reason”explains the young BTS graduate.
It’s also not easy to confide in one’s isolation at an age associated, in the collective imagination, with a period of permanent social ties, outings and parties. But far from this Epinal image, loneliness is an increasingly widespread illness among younger generations, in an ever more atomized society. Young people are even the first to suffer from this “epidemic of loneliness”as it was called, in 2023, American researchers and senior officials.
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In France, 62% of young people aged 18-24 regularly feel alone, according to a study by the French Institute of Public Opinion (IFOP) published in January 2024. In June 2023, an annual study by the Jean Jaurès Foundation also revealed that, while almost half of French people (46%) say they feel alone, this proportion peaks at 71% among 18-24 year olds. And yet, while this problem is more readily attributed to elderly people (37% of those over 65 are affected, according to the IFOP), “most research and policies on loneliness have too often neglected young people”regrets the report from the Jean Jaurès Foundation.
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