Health Risks Of Being Lonely

When you feel lonely, you might seek the company of your friends. This could help you get rid of the “painful feeling” for the time being. But what happens when your friends leave? You would probably feel the same again and you will realize that you are back to square one.

There are studies that show that 80 percent of those under 18 years of age and 40 percent of those over 65 years do feel lonely sometimes.¹ Loneliness is a common feeling that can cause more harm to your body than you think.

There are three different types of loneliness.²

• Situational loneliness – The factors associated with situational loneliness are environmental factors like unpleasant experiences, inter personal conflicts, and accidents.

• Developmental loneliness – Most individuals have a relationship balance between the self and others. When an individual cannot balance these two relationships, then there is a feeling of emptiness and meaninglessness in life which contributes to the feeling of loneliness. Factors that often lead to developmental loneliness include significant separations, social marginality, poverty, living arrangements, and physical/psychological disabilities.

• Internal loneliness – The perception of being alone makes a person lonely. The various factors associated with internal loneliness are personality factors, locus of control, mental distress, low self-esteem, guilt feeling, and poor coping strategies with situations.

Health Risks Of Being Lonely

1. Physical Health And Mental Health

The greater the number of lonely occasions individuals face, the greater their number of cardiovascular risks. Studies have also associated loneliness with an increase in systolic blood pressure.³

Loneliness-related chronic stress can cause low-grade peripheral inflammation which in turn can be linked to inflammatory diseases like diabetes, autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, and hypertension.⁴

There is a study that also shows an association of loneliness and the risk of incident coronary heart disease, particularly in women.⁵

As far as mental health of an individual is concerned, loneliness has been associated with personality disorder and psychoses, suicide, increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease, and increases in depressive symptoms. It is also known that it increases perceived stress, fear of negative evaluation, anxiety, and anger, and diminishes optimism and self-esteem.

2. Behavior

One of the most common impacts of loneliness is its impact on an individuals behavior. It is important to regulate your feelings, behavior, and thoughts to achieve personal goals or to aide by the social norms. Feeling socially isolated can hinder the ability to self regulate.⁶

Loneliness has also become a risk factor for obesity and also one of the main reasons why individuals use alcohol.⁷ Loneliness promotes a negative perception about oneself and the relationship with others. It also has the power to make an individual question his/her self worth.

People also feel lonely when they grieve the loss of someone close to them. It must be noted that loneliness in grief is associated with acute absence of an attachment figure, rather than absence of a social support. Additionally, loneliness in bereavement is a risk factor for the development of depression.

3. Sleep

Loneliness can cause sleep disorders. Loneliness causes stress levels to rise and this can cause an individual to have a disturbed sleep.⁸

It is also known that lonely individuals indicate poorer sleep efficiency with daytime dysfunction like low energy and fatigue. Loneliness also causes people to be awake fore more time after sleep onset than others who aren’t lonely.⁹

4. Immune System

There has been extensive research on psychosocial effects of stress on neuroendocrine and immune systems. Loneliness has been associated with impaired cellular immunity, as reflected by lower natural killer (NK) cell activity. In addition, loneliness among middle-age adults has been found associated with smaller increase in NK cell numbers ,in response to acute stress associated with various tasks. Humoral immune response may also be impaired in lonely individuals.¹⁰

Ways To Reduce Loneliness

Here are some ways to reduce loneliness.¹¹

• Recognize your loneliness – If you are feeling a bit off, ask yourself if you are feeling lonely. Recognizing your loneliness will help you reduce it. Talking to a friend or a close family member will help reduce this feeling.
• Think differently about relationships – If your family or close friends are not around you physically, that does not mean they don’t care. Avoid making negative assumptions about your relationship with others. Talk to people that help you think positively about others and yourself.
• Show positive body language – Showing positive body language will draw people’s attention. Your body language reflects your confidence.
• Visit a therapist – Loneliness may have different levels. For some people it may just be a temporary feeling but for others it may be more severe than the others. It is important to visit a counselor or a therapist. They may be able to help you free yourself from the painful feeling of loneliness.