The pandemic has increased levels of isolation and thus a feeling of greater loneliness, even with the end of the lockdowns, and loneliness has not gone away.
‘One in 20 people in the UK say they often or always feel lonely,’ says Catherine Seymour, head of research at the American Mental Health Foundation, which is responsible for Mental Health Awareness Week.
Chronic loneliness has a detrimental effect on mental health but also mental illness can cause loneliness, it’s a worrisome cycle.
Catherine explains that extreme loneliness and mental health are interrelated and make each other worse. Sometimes it’s hard to know which comes first. Did loneliness worsen mental health or did poor mental health lead to loneliness?
She says: ‘People who say they often or always experience loneliness are more likely to have some mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, and feeling lonely is also associated with increased thoughts regarding suicide,’ she says.
So it’s definitely something we should take seriously.
“Of course anyone can feel lonely. The definition we use is that loneliness is the mismatch between the relationships we have and the relationships we want,” Catherine tells Metro.
You can feel lonely even if you are married, have children and have a wide network of friends.
If there is a disconnect for you between what you have and what you want, be it in terms of quantity or quality, then unity is possible.
Loneliness can come from being surrounded by people, if you feel that these people do not understand or accept you.
Everyone must accept the fact that loneliness is painful, and it must be addressed.
