How to Escape Loneliness

Specifically, since it's been so hard to get together with friends and family, COVID-19 has shown us the importance of social connections and how prevalent loneliness is in our lives. Loneliness is a feeling of sadness because someone lacks meaningful social connections. Loneliness can be classified into two buckets based on its duration: transient loneliness versus chronic loneliness. The late John T. Cacioppo, who co-founded the field of social neuroscience and is known as the Michael Jordan of loneliness research, argued that loneliness is an evolutionary trait necessary for the survival of our genes. While transient loneliness is not harmful, chronic loneliness is, and it happens when transient loneliness stays for a long period of time. Simply put, chronic loneliness reduces your chances of living a healthy, longer life, and those with stronger social connections have a 50% increased likelihood of survival. Talking about mental health stats can be a bit of a downer, so time for some better vibes 👊. Loneliness does carry some social stigma - no one wants to admit that they lack something as essential as human connection.