For Loneliness Awareness Week 2023, we are happy to share the below article from Psych Health’s Dr Anna Wachowska on the impact of loneliness on our physical health.
Why It Matters: The Psychology of Loneliness and Its Impact on Our Physical Health
Loneliness refers to a state of emotional distress that results from a discrepancy between our desire for social connectedness and the actual experience of it. Our need for connection and belonging is an innate one; compared to some other species, human babies are completely dependent on their caregiver, our need for the other warrants our physiological but also psychological survival and growth - ‘as we relate, we create ourselves, we are relational’ (Gergen, 2009). We get wounded as well as healed in our key relationships.
In therapy, the relationship is a vehicle for change; And yet loneliness is a feeling that many of us are familiar with. Despite its universality, it is an experience that is both complex and unique to each individual and its causes may vary greatly. Experiences of social rejection, heartbreak, isolation, ostracization or loss have been regarded as one of the most ‘painful’ or even unbearable experiences. Emerging neuroscientific evidence also indicates that there is a substantial overlap between physical pain and social pain, in other words, there is a substantial interaction in neural circuitry, neural pathways and inflammatory responses when it comes an activation of both physical and social pain. Evidence also suggests that loneliness, especially when it becomes chronic and prolonged, poses a serious threat to our sense of self, our mental well-being as well as long-term physical health.
Loneliness and its impact on our health & wellbeing
Although, it can be challenging to distinguish the causes of chronic loneliness from its consequences, research does suggest that it is a risk factor for heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and arthritis, lung disease, hypertension, atherosclerosis, stroke, and metabolic disorders, such as obesity, among other diseases. The state of chronic loneliness can activate adverse physiological mechanisms including an elevated production of stress and inflammatory activity, disturbed sleep and weakened immunity. Evidence also indicates that individuals who are chronically lonely may be even twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Research also points to higher mortality rates in individuals who experience chronic loneliness.
Loneliness can therefore lead to a wide range of unintended and damaging effects on both physical and mental health, including altered brain function, decreased memory and learning, poor decision-making, antisocial behaviour, depression and suicide. For some, substance misuse is the only way to cope with such difficult feelings, for others, constant busyness and preoccupation is a way of escaping the void that it generates, invariably leading to stress or anxiety, overwhelm and eventually burnout. Furthermore, certain populations may be more vulnerable to loneliness and its adverse impacts. For example, elderly, adolescents, people with long-term physical conditions, on lower incomes and people with existing mental health problems may be at more risk of isolation and may be more negatively impacted by loneliness in contrast to the general population. Digital connectiveness also plays a role in loneliness, a factor that seems more significant for elderly.
Importantly, the pandemic and the lockdowns have magnified experience of loneliness for many of us – research shows that loneliness was almost three times that of pre-pandemic levels. The pandemic seemed to have exacerbated existing inequalities in our society, which also meant that groups that were already at risk of loneliness – such as those who were poorer, in worse health or from ethnic minorities or LGBTQ+ communities, were more likely to become even more lonely. Although, it seems that levels of satisfaction have been steadily improving as the restrictions eased, with depression and anxiety also decreasing at a similar rate, there is evidence to suggest that levels of loneliness were reducing more slowly. This poses grounds for concerns about individuals who may face more barriers to reconnection, once again perpetuating the disparity and creating uneven recovery for the most disadvantaged, who may be even more left behind.
Overcoming loneliness
Sadly, there is still a lot of misunderstanding and shame that is associated with feeling lonely, which may further compound the issue and make it harder for individuals to seek help. Work on alleviating loneliness must therefore be centred on reducing the stigma associated with it and therefore bringing the issue of loneliness and its dark consequences, into the light.
As causes for loneliness can vary and may also be influenced by one’s insecure & anxious attachment style, personality factors (such as introversion, inhibition, or shyness for example) and cognitive perceptions (i.e., unhelpful & negative beliefs about the self and others), overcoming loneliness may warrant an individually tailored intervention. Important to note that loneliness can be overcome. There are some practical ways of addressing loneliness, which include embracing self-compassion, understanding the effects of loneliness on one’s life, identifying and challenging unhelpful thinking & relational patterns, practicing intentional vulnerability (with oneself and others), identifying one’s values and experimenting with activities, strengthening current relationship/s and developing new ones, learning to be more assertive, trying behavioural activation to get moving as well as addressing pre-existing or co existing mental health difficulties.
Conclusive remarks
It is important to affirm that loneliness is a natural phenomenon, and a (subjective) feeling that may arise at certain moments in everyone’s life. Chronic loneliness however is potentially a complex construct and a phenomenon that exerts a powerful and damaging influence on our psychological and physical health. It is vital to work on combating loneliness and advocating for a deep social change, especially in the years following on from the pandemic.
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