Loneliness is a state that almost all of us have experienced or will experience at some point in our lives, but it is not recommended for anyone. Chronic loneliness can cause morphological changes in the brain, reduce cognitive abilities, and increase the risk of premature death. Discover seven symptoms that reveal loneliness.
What is loneliness?
Psychology defines loneliness as a feeling of distress that accompanies the perception that a person's socioemotional needs are not being met by the quality of their interpersonal relationships. Sometimes we need to be alone, but that is different from feeling lonely continuously. We can feel lonely for various reasons, such as being rejected, the feeling of not fitting in, the death of a loved one, etc. Of course, we understand that the loneliness we are talking about is not only a physical fact but also a feeling.What are the effects of loneliness?
Numerous studies show that chronic loneliness can have a range of harmful effects on our mental health, life satisfaction, and overall well-being. Almost all recommendations for the prevention of dementia and neurodegenerative diseases include avoiding loneliness. In MRI tests, it has been found that in groups of individuals with active social connections who do not report feeling lonely, their brain (Antioxidant Supplements for the Brain) volume is larger than that of people who do feel lonely. In a 2021 study, it was reported that people who frequently talked with others obtained better results in cognitive tests compared to those who did not. This coincides with other published studies, which state that older adults with more active social networks had better cognitive function (Antioxidant Supplement for Short Term Memory Loss) than those who lacked that social support. Perhaps one of the most compelling pieces of evidence came recently with the COVID-19 pandemic, where isolation caused a rapid deterioration in many patients with mild cognitive dysfunction who still had high functionality and lived independently. Loneliness also influences insomnia (6 Powerful Reasons to Sleep Well) and sleep disorders. Lonely people suffer much more from sleep interruptions; the link between loneliness and a bad night is very close, as chronic anxiety and depression make it difficult to fall asleep and maintain sleep. Loneliness reduces life expectancy. In 2012, two studies were conducted where it was warned that feeling lonely could increase the risk of dying prematurely. In the first, forty-five thousand people aged 45 or older who had some heart disease (Benefits of Omega 3 for Cardiovascular Health) or were at high risk of having it were studied, and those who lived alone were more likely to die from stroke, heart attacks, and other similar complications within 4 years compared to those who lived among friends or family. The second study focused on people aged 60 or older and found that both men and women were 45% more likely to die within 6 years if they reported feeling lonely, excluded, or isolated. Interestingly, 43% of those who reported loneliness did not always live alone, clearly indicating the relationship between loneliness as a mental state and health problems.
