I’ve said before that friendships and social connections are like an essential vitamin to a teenager. Isolation makes them “vitamin deficient” and more likely to suffer mental ill health in the form of depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts.
Now new research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) has found that socially isolated children are more likely to experience ADHD symptoms and loneliness as young adults.
Turns out social isolation in childhood leads to a range of difficulties in adulthood, even when the isolation itself was relieved. The findings mean that childhood social isolation can be a marker for mental health difficulties in young people and point to the most suitable treatment.
