loneliness in life
We quickly think of old age when we think of loneliness.
a very long one study from the United States shows that this is correct and incorrect at the same time:
- Loneliness increases from the age of 70 and reaches a high level from the age of 80.
- However, loneliness is also high in the group under 30 years of age.
- There is also another peak of loneliness in the 50-60 age group.
- People between the ages of 30 and 60 report the least amount of loneliness, those in their 40s are particularly poor at loneliness, although people here also suffer from loneliness.
The results make it clear that there are connections with age, but that they are complex:
- The young and the elderly are particularly affected by loneliness. But loneliness is not uncommon among people in their 50s and 60s.
The study also found that people who were not married or widowed, lived alone, had little contact with relatives and neighbors, had a low income, or had health problems were much more likely to feel lonely.
In fact, much of age loneliness has even been shown to be unrelated to age at all, but rather due to these factors:
- In the study, high loneliness in youth and old age disappeared when controlling for marital status/widowhood, living alone, contacts with relatives and neighbors, low income, and poor health.
In addition, these factors exerted a unidirectional influence at all ages:
- Regardless of age, single or widowed status, living alone, little contact with relatives or neighbors, low income, and poor health were associated with greater loneliness.
The bad news is that loneliness is a problem for many people of all ages.
The good news, however, is that loneliness is not inevitable, there are things we can do to prevent loneliness or end loneliness if it has already occurred.
Strategies against loneliness
social media
- Social networks are the crucial strategy against loneliness at all ages. Loneliness occurs when we fail to create or maintain an adequate social network.
- The activation of existing contacts or the search for new contacts is therefore the most important strategy against loneliness.
- Romantic contacts are a good protection against loneliness, but friends, neighbors, and family members can also be helpful.
maintain and improve health
- We have many ways to maintain our health. Even if deficiencies are already present, we can manage them by adopting a healthy lifestyle and using ways to lessen the burden of health problems.
- A meat-free and plant-based diet, regular exercise, abstinence from smoking and other addictive substances, yoga, and meditation can help maintain our health and reduce any damage that may have occurred.
- Actively managing one’s own health counteracts withdrawn and isolating tendencies and thus prevents health problems from leading to loneliness.
minimalism makes you happy
- Much of what people constantly acquire and consume is actually completely unnecessary for a happy life. On the contrary, unnecessary consumer goods make us downright addicted and also destroy our environment.
- Not all low-income people are unhappy or lonely. However, the more we identify with the conditioned needs of unlimited production and consumer society, the more unhappy we become with low income and the more we feel socially excluded.
- Conscious minimalists are immune to negative consequences. They overcome addictive consumption patterns and build social contacts that are based on emotional and spiritual depth and not on material consumption.
We work against loneliness
In harmony we work against loneliness every day. Because this is where people meet for love relationships, but also for friendship, leisure, projects and commitment, cooperation and “regular meetings”.
There is also a particularly large number of people in Gleichklang who are trying to get out of conditioned compulsions to consume, who want to live, if not in a minimalist way, then at least in a more minimalist way, and who also strive to take good care of their bodies and their psyche.
Many of our members achieve a new game:
- “You suggested it to me as a mediation proposal. From there my life changed. I’ve been through personal growth, I’ve become bolder and more open-minded… even though it’s a long distance relationship and he lives abroad. I have never been happier with a partner in my life. …”
The most important message is:
Loneliness makes us sad and endangers our mental and physical health. But loneliness doesn’t have to be there, at any age, and it doesn’t have to stay once it’s settled.
