Best ways to combat loneliness

How to Combat Loneliness?

To combat loneliness:

• Make new connections
• Join groups and events of your interest
• Use social apps like Mate app to find like-minded friends.

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Loneliness is a serious problem affecting people of all ages and backgrounds. According to a recent global study, 33% of people reported that they have feelings of loneliness, with young adults and older individuals experiencing the highest levels of loneliness. Combating loneliness has always been a challenging issue, and understanding the different types of loneliness and their causes can help people feeling lonely better combat this emotion of isolation.

Here with Mate app, we invite you to read this blog to learn more about loneliness and how to combat it.

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What is Loneliness?

Loneliness is the mental and emotional unpleasant feeling that an individual has when perceiving isolation. This feeling not only occurs when you are physically alone but also happens when people surround you. So it’s not really a problem of how many people surround you, but rather more of your feelings. And this sense of loneliness can also be permanent or just happening on some occasions and everyone might have a different perception of loneliness. Remember to never blame yourself if you feel lonely ‘because it’s really not your fault.

3 Types of Loneliness

• Social loneliness: Social loneliness occurs when you feel isolated from a larger community or group. You might even experience social loneliness when having a close partner by not having a sense of belonging to a broader social circle. This can happen when you’re in a new environment and you feel that the group doesn’t value your presence.
• Emotional loneliness: Emotional loneliness is the type of emotion that arises when you lack a close, personal relationship. Feeling that you have no one to share your thoughts and feelings. It can occur when your friends are all in relationships except for you when you lose or break with a loved one who provided emotional support such as a friendship breakup, or even due to problems with your family.
• Existential loneliness: Existential loneliness is sometimes known by its characteristics of disconnection from the world. Having the feeling that you’ll be alone in your experiences forever and that no one can understand you. To a certain extent, this might be helpful to self-discovery, however after transpassing that level you might feel very bad, and finding meaning in your relationships and experiences will be needed.

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What can Cause Loneliness?

People feel lonely due to different causes, but some of the most common causes of loneliness include moving to a new city, the loss of a loved one, changing school, ending a significant relationship, changes in social roles during life, work stress, society influences and even lack of self-esteem.

Risks of Loneliness

If not treated, then loneliness can cause major health problems such as increased stress, anxiety, depression, cognitive decline, and reduced immunity. Combating loneliness daily is very important to your overall health.

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HOW TO COMBAT LONELINESS

1. Make new connections

Building new relationships is a way to combat loneliness. But you have to keep in mind that forming meaningful connections really takes time, it’s nearly impossible to establish deep connections from one day to another, there is a process and it’s normally not that short. You can try to make new friendships through work, and hobbies, or read our blog about meeting locals in Barcelona. Sometimes making an effort to meet new people can also help you distract from loneliness emotions, so why not give it a try?!

1. Share your feelings

Don’t keep all the bad feelings to yourself, find a way to share your feelings, it really helps. Try to tell close people why you feel lonely and maybe they’ll have solutions for your problem, who knows? Share your emotions with friends, family, or therapists. Make them understand why you feel alone and move forward together. Feeling cared for will help you feel less lonely.

1. Do things you enjoy

Don’t let yourself dig into the lonely emotions and try to do things that you enjoy. If you like singing then spend your time singing, if you like riding the bike then pick your bike and start riding. Immerse yourself in activities, improve your mood, and fulfill yourself with activities. If you feel alone when doing this activity then give it a try to interest groups! Maybe there you’ll find people who understand you and move on from lonely feelings!

1. Join groups of your interest

To lessen loneliness, you can also join groups of your interest, meet like-minded people, and enjoy activities together. Then you’ll be able to sing together, ride a bike together, or do any activities together with like-minded people. In some cases, you could also join a group combating loneliness to express your feelings and find help with other people going through the same emotions. It can help you understand better loneliness and thus combat loneliness.

1. Use social apps like Mate

If you are feeling lonely and don’t know where to find new friends, then we recommend you give a try to Mate app, an app that was uniquely designed to help people build meaningful connections with friends who share the same interests. With a simple onboarding process, you’ll be able to easily find new like-minded friends sharing the same interests.

Overall, combating loneliness requires understanding its causes and taking active measures to build connections. Making new friends, sharing your emotions, participating in fun activities, and joining supportive communities can help you overcome loneliness and improve your quality of life.

With Mate app, we hope that you can feel better and find the perfect way to combat loneliness. We understand how challenging it can be, but we still encourage you to make positive changes in your life. We trust you! ❤️