08/15/2023
๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐, ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ข๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง
Do you know loneliness? In people's minds, loneliness is a subjective concept.
It is loosely defined and used in different ways in common parlance. When asked how loneliness manifests itself or what it means, many people associate it with sadness, fear, emptiness or complete abandonment.
Having social contacts, feeling the ties that unite us to others and their support is of paramount importance for the balance of society, but also for satisfaction, well-being and health!
Conversely, some people like to be alone when this solitude is a conscious choice, for example to compensate for the hectic pace of everyday life, to let go or to refocus. In this case, solitude is chosen and experienced as a positive state.
๐
๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐ฌ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ
According to Dr. Maike Luhmann, Professor at the Faculty of Psychology at Ruhr University in Bochum, there are three relevant forms of loneliness in social research: (2)
๐๐ฑ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐:
it is defined as an unbearable emptiness, sadness and nostalgia. It can also be understood as โloneliness in relationshipsโ: a loneliness felt when we feel isolated from the people around us. Existential loneliness can also be interpreted as the absence of meaning in life, that is to say as a loneliness that expresses that one has moved away from life.
๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ง๐ฆ๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐จ๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฌ:
The second definition of loneliness is based on the assumption that humans have a basic need for social connections. When this basic need remains unsatisfied, it is perceived as negative and painful. This sensation is reflected in particular by the fact that similar brain areas are active when you feel alone or when you feel physical pain. At the same time, the non-satisfaction of this basic need is also a strongly felt incentive to end this negative state as soon as possible.
๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ:
The third most frequently cited scientific definition of loneliness describes loneliness as an unpleasant experience that occurs when a person's network of social relationships is grossly inadequate, whether quantitatively or qualitatively. Two comparable elements are at the heart of this definition: desired social relations and lived social relations.
๐๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐ก๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ฉ๐ฌ
๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐จ๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐จ๐ค๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ญ๐๐ก๐ช๐จ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐๐๐ค๐ง ๐จ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐จ๐จ๐ค๐ง๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ก๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ก๐ฉ๐ ๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐๐ก๐๐ข๐จ.
In psychiatry, loneliness has long been considered a symptom of other mental disorders. However, current knowledge shows that this suffering must be considered as a phenomenon in its own right, which can trigger a wide variety of concomitant psychological and physical illnesses: the causal links between loneliness and increased vulnerability to depression, suicidal tendencies, anxiety disorders (including social phobia) or an increased likelihood of being placed in a socio-medical establishment are now well established thanks to numerous scientific studies. People who feel alone are also more often victims of cancer, heart attack, stroke or dementia.
The mutual influence between loneliness and psyche can be described as a vicious circle in which psychic illnesses and loneliness accumulate and end up triggering a negative spiral for health. Those affected feel lonely and increasingly avoid social contact. Instead of going out, they increasingly stay at home and withdraw into themselves, which reinforces their feeling of loneliness and social isolation.
