Common aspects
associated with loneliness include;
- Resisting change and new experiences.
- Not trusting other people enough to open up to them.
- Feeling anxious and as though no one will understand how miserable/isolated you feel.
- Feeling invisible and lacking the skill of assertiveness.
- Feeling uncomfortable starting conversations with strangers.
- Having the limiting belief that something is wrong with you.
- Experiencing low self-esteem.
- Feeling angry and defensive which leads to being critical about things even if they don't directly relate to you.
- Shyness when around other people.
- Feeling disconnected to other people when in a group or crowd.
- When in a crowd you feel like you are drowning in the voices.
- Feeling that you’re the only person who doesn't have any friends.
- Feeling extremely self-conscious in most everything you do.
- Feeling that other people won't understand your problems because they are so unique.
- Having thoughts of suicide.
If you are unwilling
to open up to other people chances are other people will also avoid opening up
to you and the sense of loneliness that you feel will increase. If you want
friends then you need to be a friend first. It should be no surprise that love gives
life to others yet it is important to remember that in order to love someone
else effectively you must love yourself first. You can't give what you don't
have.
In order to stop
feeling lonely you will need to develop friendships with other people however before
doing that you need to become comfortable in your own company and feel better
about yourself in general. Following is a list of ideas on ways to decrease
your loneliness;
- Remind yourself the feeling of loneliness is temporary.
- Put yourself in situations where you will meet people.
- Make an effort to speak to someone new.
- Join societies like church groups, volunteer organizations etc.
- Stop listening to lonely songs.
- Open yourself to others.
- Don't judge new people on the basis of past relationships with previous people.
- Intimate friendships usually develop gradually as people learn to share their inner feelings with each other.
- Lead a well-balanced life and pay attention to nutrition, exercise and getting sufficient sleep.
- Spend time alone for self-reflection.
- Reflect back on good memories and be grateful for what you have.
- Learn a new skill e.g. dancing, drawing, painting etc
- Spend time meditating or praying
- If you feel you need assistance with overcoming loneliness or you are feeling depressed don't be afraid to seek help from a professional –doctor, counselor, coach
- Do a program such as 60 Day Self Esteem Challenge
As technology increases and allows us to do so much more
from our own homes the level of isolation and loneliness that people feel also
appears to be increasing. In order to
overcome feelings of loneliness it is necessary to have interaction with others
in person. If you want to feel less
lonely than it is up to you to do something about it and make an effort to put
yourself in situations where there are people to interact and socialize
with. The first step in letting go of
your loneliness is deciding that you want things to improve. Once you have made
that decision and give some of the suggestions listed above a go you might even
find yourself learning skills you never imagined learning and also having
fun.
