As the poet Rupi Kaur wrote, “the irony of loneliness is we all feel it at the same time - together.” Very few of us can claim we haven’t had feelings of isolation at some point in our lives, or yearned for more or better relationships than we have. Bereavement, relocation, break ups, even certain periods of the year weighed down with social expectation - such as Christmas or long bank holiday weekends - can all cause one to feel disconnected.
And now, new research signals how urgent the conversation is to be had today. Last week, US surgeon general Vivek Murthy released an advisory urging society to treat loneliess as just as dangerous to someone’s health as drug abuse, and that those suffering ar at greater risk of diabetes, depression, high blood pressure and heart disease. “Right now, millions of people are telling us through their stories and statistics that their tank is running on empty when it comes to social connection,” he said. “So bottom line is this has to be a public health priority that we consider on par with tobacco, with substance use disorders, with obesity and other issues that we know profoundly impacted people’s lives.”
