Being lonely increases
the risk of everything from heart attacks to dementia, depression
and death. People who are satisfied with their social lives sleep
better, age more slowly, and respond better to vaccines. Those who
have rich social lives and warm relationships do not get as sick and
they live longer. A person can be lonely in a crowd or be alone and
not be lonely.
Research shows, our bodies have evolved so that in situations of
perceived social isolation, they trigger branches of the immune
system involved in wound healing and bacterial infection.
Differences relate most strongly to how lonely people think they
are. Ending loneliness is not about spending more time with people,
but about our attitude to others. Changing this attitude reduces
loneliness more effectively than giving people more opportunities
for interaction.
Meditation is typically done while a person is alone and there is
evidence that meditation boosts the immune response in vaccine
recipients and people with cancer, protects against a relapse in
major depression, soothes skin conditions, and even slows the
progression of HIV. As with social interaction, meditation works
largely by influencing stress response pathways. People who meditate
have lower cortisol levels.
In a study of fifty people with advanced lung cancer, those judged
by their doctors to have high “spiritual faith” responded better to
chemotherapy and survived longer. More than forty percent were still
alive after three years, compared with less than ten percent of
those judged to have little faith.
Some think that what matters is having a sense of purpose in life.
Having an idea of why you are here and what is important increases
your sense of control over events. Spending more time doing what you
love, whether it is gardening or volunteer work has a similar effect
on health. Bottom line, loneliness is more of an attitude than a
state of physical being. You have the power to be happy,
alone or with others.