Written by Kailie A. (KIS '21)
━━ Nov 16th, 2020 ━━
There are lots of mental illnesses that can be cured by the consumption of a pill, and now scientists are coming up with a pill to cure loneliness. This pill will allow humans to feel less lonely once consumed. Loneliness occurs when the human brain indicates the body to socialize but the body refuses to do so. Loneliness can come in many different ways. The main types of loneliness are new-situation loneliness, I’m-different loneliness, and no-sweetheart loneliness. Loneliness does not come only when an individual is placed alone in an empty space, but also when the person feels left out in a crowded area.
The new-situation loneliness is when an individual move to a new area or situation and is surrounded by strange new people and places. It differentiates from the other two major types of loneliness since it changes amongst the type of person who gets affected by it. This state of loneliness leads to the influences of two new ideas - division between two types of people who are shy and unshy. Shy individuals were shown to have significantly higher loneliness scores than those who were unshy. A similarity shown between both types of people was that they showed a decline in loneliness over habituation in an area, but shy students were still significantly lonelier than unshy students even after an increase in time. These indicated that the new-situation loneliness contributed to the amount of severeness by social situations and personality dispositions.
The I’m-different loneliness comes when one does not feel belonged, and feels emotionally isolated. This type of loneliness is also called the state loneliness, where the loneliness is generated more by the environment than the person. It changes on the type of surrounding an individual is placed in. It may occur when one moves to a new school or business, a new country, or a place where she does not have any connection with the people around that person. This loneliness does not last very long. However, if this type of loneliness starts to last for a long time, it generates trait loneliness where it follows the individual everywhere. The loneliness is grown from the person, though particular circumstances might worsen the experience of loneliness.
Lastly, the no-sweetheart loneliness comes when a romantic life is unfulfilled and is in an unsatisfied relationship. It occurs even if you have a wide range of friends and circle of a family but still feels lonely without a romantic partner. The loneliness occurs more likely when one is in a relationship with a romantic partner but does not share a closely acquainted connection. This loneliness sparks when one longs to have somebody close enough to truly understand what type of person he/she is.
Feelings of isolation and loneliness can have serious effects on one’s mental and physical health. Loneliness contributes to the development of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, and many more critical diseases. The mental pain leads to the decrease of immunity, aging the body, and bringing damage to the overall well-being.
Loneliness occurs in many different situations if one’s mental state is weak. Even if a person forces themselves to be in a crowded area, they can still feel loneliness which means it is not easily cured. In fact, it is very easy for him/her to feel lonely. It does not get cured simply by the change of one’s mindset. Before feeling lonely, it is important to try to socialize as much as possible so that the brain does not send a message to the whole body to socialize. Feeling loneliness for a long amount of time makes you change your mindset. Changing maladaptive thinking is very important. Instead of keeping the negative conversations delivered with another person, thinking about the positive conversations and relationships shared with another person should be the main motivation when living.
As people age along with everyone around them, they are sometimes led to being left alone. Getting out to meet new people will get more and more limited once one starts to age. Physical limitations as well, such as diminished sight and hearing can interfere with the ability to reach out and hold conversations. Since loneliness is something that everyone of all ages can deal with, it is important for society to help people combat this conflict. Taking steps to increase social opportunities is as important to public health as promoting other major problems such as obesity and drug usage, which is why the development of pills to reduce loneliness will certainly help increase the general society’s values on life. The focus of this pill should be mainly centered on those who have physical limitations or have dealt with depression for a long amount of time and cannot find a cure out of it.
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Credits:
“7 Types of Loneliness, and Why It Matters.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 27 Feb. 2017, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-happiness-project/201702/7-types-loneliness-and-why-it-matters.
“Loneliness.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/loneliness.
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