Coping With Loneliness (Part 4): Support Others Who Experience Loneliness Melanie Dabb, Jared Hawkins, Christina Pay, Eva Timothy, Cindy Jenkins, and Christine Jensen
It is natural to want to offer help and support when someone we love or care about is experiencing loneliness. Paradoxically, this is one of the best ways to reduce our own loneliness. In response, Utah State University (USU) Extension faculty developed three fact sheets to describe some of the most effective ways to reduce loneliness. This fourth fact sheet suggests ways to ensure our efforts to support others who are experiencing loneliness are helpful and supportive.
This “Coping With Loneliness” fact sheet series addresses the most effective ways to enhance connectedness:
Identify Who May Be Experiencing Loneliness
Part 3 – Focus on What You Can Change
Part 1 – Look Inward Part 2 – Look Outward
Loneliness can influence people to expect negative social experiences. The Part 4 – Support Others Who brains of those experiencing loneliness cause them to view social settings as Experience Loneliness threatening. It is important to understand that in our brains, the sensory fibers that register physical and emotional pain overlap causing our brains to process both types of pain in a similar way (Murthy, 2020). Those experiencing loneliness are also more likely to see social slights where none were intended and to think of others and their behavior in a more pessimistic way. When someone does or says something that reinforces these thoughts, it further reinforces behaviors that prevent the lonely person from creating and having the social support they desire. This is why it is important to be aware of those in our life who may be lonely and identify the best ways to support them (Cacioppo & Hawkley, 2009). Speaking in general, those who are more at risk of experiencing loneliness are those who are aging, young adults, immigrants, LGBTQ+, those who live alone, live in rural areas, and those who have disabilities, chronic diseases, or lower income (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023).
1