LONELINESS

A sense of loneliness is often created by a change in a person’s life.  Coming into recovery can force someone to give up their old social circle and end relationships that at one time may have been important to them.

Loneliness can strike when a person is alone or it can happen in a room full of people if they feel detached from the others.  For some people, it is a steady state of mind that eventually begins to affect their sleep and overall health.

Some people might not admit to being lonely – they may go out and socialize a lot, but their connections with others are only on the surface, particularly if the person has a negative image of themselves.  They may not want to let others get to know them because they are afraid other people won’t like them.

There are some helpful ways to overcome loneliness.  First, don’t isolate.  Isolation can be detrimental to self-esteem and it allows time to dwell on what a person perceives to be negative aspects of their lives.

Also, keep busy.  It is important for an individual to be and stay active – join a group, take up a new hobby, do whatever is meaningful to them.

Finally, be kind to oneself.   Everyone should try to keep their thoughts positive and treat themselves to something special, even if there are times they think they don’t deserve it.

 

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