ONLY THE LONELY
Despite the plethora of modern technology connecting us to each other, we are lonelier than ever, impacting both our mental & physical health. So what needs to change?
We’re lonelier than ever, and it’s affecting our health. So what needs to change?
In today’s world, loneliness is more than just a feeling of isolation or exclusion. It is a tragic reality of modern life – an epidemic with a tangible cost to society. One oft-quoted US study suggests that the impact of loneliness on health is the equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
Loneliness has been linked to high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and early death, leading to increased visits to the doctor and more pressure on the public health system. Then there is the social cost to families, friends and communities – as well as the estimated billions in lost production in the economy.
Preliminary results from Australia’s first research project on the impact of loneliness – conducted by Melbourne’s Swinburne University and the Australian Psychological Society – found that more than one in two Australians feel lonely for at least one day in a week, while more than one in four feel lonely for three or more days.
The Japanese even have a word, kodokushi, for the death of someone who dies alone and unnoticed.
Tracey Crouch, the world’s first Minister For Loneliness, explains that loneliness is where mental health was 10 years ago. People are afraid to admit to feeling lonely because of the stigma. However, she hopes that can change.
“When I was appointed, the number of people that were coming forward and saying, ‘Thank you, I have felt enormously lonely, but I’ve been too afraid to say it’ is something that shows that we should be talking about loneliness and we shouldn’t be ashamed. What we should be ashamed of is if we don’t have a framework around them to support them.”
Britain has recently launched its first loneliness strategy, which will encourage people to build and
strengthen connections in their communities; allow GPs to refer patients to social activities and other types of support; and enlist the help of high-profile businesses to recognise loneliness and support their employees’ wellbeing.
The strategy will include a range of government departments – from Education, Health and Transport to Sports and Social Care – as well as volunteer and community groups.
“It’s a starting point, really, for how we tackle loneliness,” says Crouch. “It sets out how we will work together with businesses and local authorities and the housing sector to combat loneliness across all ages. And more importantly, [it will] help reduce the stigma around the issue.”
Crouch was appointed Britain’s Minister For Loneliness back in 2018, following the murder of her colleague Jo Cox – who had set up the Loneliness Commission before she was killed by a right-wing extremist in 2016. Last year, the commission reported that over nine million people in Britain “often or always” felt lonely. Judging by the enthusiastic international reaction Crouch’s appointment has received, loneliness is a global issue. Contacts from around the world have told her they are watching what she is doing in the hope they can replicate it in their own countries.
In October, Australian politician Fiona Patten penned an article about why Australia should have its own minister for loneliness, citing a 2016 Lifeline study which claimed that more than 80 per cent of Australians believe society is becoming a lonelier place.
“Certainly we’ve seen some real receptive thinking to our plan on loneliness from Australia,” she says. “I mean, this is not unique to the UK. In fact, we’ve had quite a lot of contact from people in Australia as well as other countries around the world, because I think people are recognising it as a public health issue.”
One could point the finger at many causes for our increased loneliness – the number of people who go whole weeks without seeing anybody; long working hours; fewer closer friends; smaller families; the
paradox of social media, which can leave us feeling isolated despite being ‘connected’ to so many people. The strategy’s own literature lists several life events that often contribute to loneliness, including moving home, losing a job, being a victim of crime, children leaving home, bereavement, moving into care and the breakdown of relationships.
It is clear there is no one single cause for our increased loneliness. Nor is there one typical group of ‘lonely’ people: loneliness can affect anyone. As the late Cox said, “young or old, loneliness doesn’t discriminate”.
“Often in the past, we’ve made assumptions that loneliness is an issue that affects the over-65s, those who lose mobility or loved ones,” says Crouch. “[But] 16 to 24-year-olds are more likely to identify as lonely than older people.”
Indeed, in Australia, the Dis/ Connect Study by Galaxy revealed that one in six 18-34 year- olds felt lonely every day, compared with seven per cent of 35- 49-year- olds and eight per cent of people aged 50 or older. One wonders what role technology has played in the loneliness epidemic. Certainly, teen mental health has plummeted dramatically in the years since the introduction of smartphones – which has led publications like The Atlantic to ask ‘Have Smartphones Destroyed A Generation?’
Crouch explains that it’s hard to say that technology is the cause of all loneliness, but it may well be a contributing factor. “Technology can also be a really good solution to loneliness, such as connecting older generations with family who may well have left their hometown or their community for work.”
Loneliness is also a problem across the Tasman. New Zealand’s General Social Survey revealed that it was young people aged 15 to 24 who reported feeling most isolated. However, loneliness also rises later in life with older people.
Professor Merryn Gott, an end- oflife care expert from the University of Auckland’s School of Nursing, agrees with the idea of having a minister with responsibility for this area – but would leave ‘loneliness’ out of the title.
“We’ve found in our current study, funded by the Ageing Well National Science Challenge, that older people feel there is significant stigma around identifying as lonely, and this can prevent them from seeking help. Maybe instead we need to change our terminology to talk about social connection – and recognise that we all experience fluctuations in our degree of social connection.”
Professor Gott says that most of us will identify as lonely at some point in our lives. “Older people can be particularly at risk of reduced social connection. We found a critical concern was not having control over the extent to which you are able to connect socially,” he says.
“Many of the solutions proposed [to reduce loneliness] are at an individual level: checking on neighbours who may be isolated, writing … to older people in care homes. These are all great activities – but our research confirms that in New Zealand, we need to be also be thinking much bigger picture.”
Professor Gott says that some of the key barriers to older people – and, in fact, people of all ages – being able to connect socially are structural.
“For example, study participants talked about a need for better public transport that could take them where they wanted to go, especially when they were no longer able to drive or could not afford to run a car. Indeed, lack of finances was also discussed as a barrier to connecting with both friends and the wider world. Many talked about liking going to cafés to meet friends, but also to connect with the wider world and ‘get out of the house’ – all things that could alleviate feelings of loneliness. However, as we know, coffee costs money. I believe that a minister with responsibility for supporting community connections could be great.”
Minister Crouch says that one of the surprises in the statistics is that urban loneliness is likely to be greater than rural loneliness.
“We quite often make an assumption that if you are isolated by rurality – and this would be very relevant in Australia – that you’re lonely. Whereas [we assume that] if you’re in a massive city like Sydney, you’re not. Although it’s a marginal difference, our statistics have shown that you’re more likely to be lonely if you live in an urban area than if you live in a rural area.”
Whatever the demographic, Crouch says that many people are vulnerable to loneliness at some point in their life. “That’s not to say that we shouldn’t feel lonely at times in our life, because we should. It’s a natural emotion. The problem is when it becomes an acute chronic problem.”
Of course, Crouch is aware that the problem of loneliness won’t be solved in her ministerial lifetime.
“We’re talking 10, 15, 20 years before, I think, we’re going to be in a much better place. The thing is, we’ve started the work.
“The government cannot, and should not, tell you who to be friends with or what kind of relationships that you have. But we can provide a framework to assure that there are opportunities to create that connection.”
“The Japanese even have a word, kodokushi, for the death of someone who dies alone and unnoticed.”