Feeling alone and lonely is not abnormal. Here are tips on what to do when you are lonely to help you manage your well-being moving forward.
Loneliness is a near-universal experience. We have all felt lonely at some point in our lives. As per a recent Cigna analysis of 10,000 Americans, an astounding 61% reported feeling lonely.
While, on one hand, technological interventions have brought us closer than we ever were in the course of human history, so many of us feel constant loneliness inside of us. You can have hundreds of people around you and across your social media channels, yet you might feel misunderstood and more alone than you’ve ever been.
This is what loneliness is. It’s a psychological state that’s less about being physically alone and more about being emotionally and mentally alone. Loneliness occurs when there’s a mismatch between what you have and what you clearly want from your relationships.
You feel lonely because you feel like you aren’t satisfied with what you have in your life currently. And until you figure out what’s missing, you will continue searching for answers on what to do when you are lonely.
The good part – being lonely isn’t as bad as you think!
However, chances are you struggle to understand what to do when you feel lonely. Well, we have got you covered! In this blog post, we will dive deeper into effective tips and activities on what to do when lonely that can help you make the most out of your alone time. Let’s dive in!
9 Excellent Tips On What To Do When You Are Lonely
1. Admit that you’re lonely. Validate yourself.
One of the first tips on what to do when you are lonely is to accept these feelings. Far too many times, we run away from our loneliness. There’s a sense of shame and stigma attached to feeling alone. Therefore, we try to deny how we are feeling, which ends up doing far more harm than good.
This is why, at the very step, try to get real with your feelings. Most of the struggles we have with loneliness are associated with the shame and judgment surrounding it. So, if you are looking for answers on what to do when you feel alone, try ditching the judgment and validating yourself instead. Try to understand that loneliness is something that we all experience from time to time, and there’s nothing to be ashamed about.
2. Take stock of the connections that you already have.
The next tip on what to do when feeling lonely is to reconnect with your friends and family.
The thing with loneliness is that you often fail to notice what’s right in front of you. We start looking through a tunnel vision where some actions count as love and affection while we refuse to see a huge part of people’s efforts toward us. For instance, you might be adamant that your friends don’t post pictures with you on social media but completely forget that they are readily available for you whenever you need them.
This is why one of the best tips on what to do if you feel lonely is to try expanding your definition of love and affection. This will help you understand that you have genuine connections and people who look out for you.
3. Build a relationship with yourself.
When you are alone, you have an incredible opportunity to connect with yourself. When surrounded by people, the noise and clutter in our surroundings rarely give us a chance to dive deeper into our feelings. This is why one of the best tips on what to do when you’re lonely is to start investing your time in building a healthy relationship with yourself.
This will not only help you enjoy your company but also allow you to understand more about who you truly are as a person and where you are heading.
Use this loneliness and discomfort as a learning space to reconnect with yourself. And we promise you will see a change in how you feel about yourself and the world around you.
4. Talk to new people.
One of the best tips on what to do when you are lonely is to try to talk to new people. Sometimes, strangers offer a sense of comfort and love that even the most cherished relationships of our lives can’t.
If you find making new friends or talking to strangers is hard for you, just try being more open at the beginning. Here are some tips that can help you strike better conversations and build connections with new people:
- Be open to starting a conversation with people.
- Try looking for the positives in people you meet.
- Let go of the fear of rejection.
- Be open about your struggles with loneliness.
5. Do something for others.
One of the best tips on what to do when you are lonely is to join communities or support groups working for a cause close to your heart. Whether it’s foster care, literacy, or environmental support – try to find communities and volunteer groups engaged in activities regarding these subjects.
These groups are one of the best ways to reclaim connections within the community. It helps you move your focus away from yourself and focus more on communicating with people who are passionate about similar issues.
Essentially, if you’re looking for answers about what to do when you are feeling lonely, tuition or mentoring to kids can be highly beneficial as well.
6. Try being more vulnerable.
One of the primary reasons why people feel lonely is because they refuse to share their deepest feelings with others. The real reason isn’t that you don’t have people to be around; it’s because you don’t feel comfortable being vulnerable with them.
When you cannot share how you feel with those around you, you start feeling cornered, which puts you in a shell even further. It’s a vicious cycle that feeds on your relationship anxiety.
Therefore, one of the best tips on what to do when you are lonely is to try being more vulnerable with the people you love. Be more upfront about your loneliness. Acknowledge your shortcomings, discuss your fears, and try to connect on a deeper level.
This will help you fight your loneliness and also help build genuine connections and relationships.
7. Learn something new or join a group.
One of the best answers on what to do when you are lonely is to invest in something new. Creativity is one of the best ways to cope with loneliness. Therefore, try engaging in a new hobby or reconnect with an old one that you used to love doing as a child.
Additionally, if you want to know what to do if you are lonely, try joining a class, club, or organization regarding this hobby. This will help you with two things – you learn something new to channel your thoughts, and you make good connections with people that make you feel less alone.
Pro tip: If you are looking for answers on what to do when you’re lonely without talking to humans (because we get how taxing that can get), try adopting a pet instead. Pets have a proven impact on people’s mental health and are one of the best ways to cope with loneliness.
8. Understand when to engage and disengage from the online world.
The online world is like a double-edged sword for all those looking to understand what to do when you are feeling lonely. Should you log in or log off from social media? Well, the answer depends.
Social media offers a less intimidating and more effective way to talk to people. Therefore, if you want to know what to do when feeling alone, joining an online community, meeting strangers online, and engaging with people can be gratifying.
However, there’s a flip side. For some people, social media might worsen their loneliness and sadness. The online world can paint a happy and glossy frame of people’s lives, which can cause feelings of jealousy and loneliness. This generated reality can significantly impact how you feel about yourself.
9. Understand that you are allowed to reach out for professional support.
Loneliness is a human response; there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be around people and craving genuine connections.
There’s a kind of loneliness that you feel because you don’t have the right people to gel with and another because of the constant inner dialogue you have with yourself. The latter is deemed as emotional loneliness.
If you are dealing with the latter and want to know what to do when you feel sad and lonely, connecting with a mental health professional can be beneficial. A therapist or counselor can help you identify the causes behind your behavior, analyze your patterns, and help develop effective coping strategies.
Conclusion:
Being alone is tough. So, if you are looking for answers on what to do when you are lonely, you’re not alone. However, there’s a lot you can do to fight loneliness and take charge of your well-being. Catching up with people, validating your feelings, and connecting with new people through volunteer groups and hobbies can be effective tips on what to do when you feel lonely. We hope this blog post will help you get started in the right direction.
Still confused about how to deal with loneliness? You might need expert advice. Here are the best books on loneliness to help you deal with your feelings better. To continue learning about mental health daily, subscribe to Your Mental Health Pal.