Loneliness is a feeling of sadness due to both real or perceived sense of lack of company. During this time, with most states issuing “stay-at-home” orders, it can be easy to get an overwhelming sense of being alone, even when we are in a house with others. It’s okay to feel this way from time-to-time, but one of the keys is not to dwell in these emotions and to make sure you are finding good coping mechanisms to help you get out of these thoughts all while still remaining home. Here are some suggestions to help avoid feeling lonely.
Find Fictional Entertainment
When you are feeling alone, turning to things like self-help books or some other forms of nonfiction will not only be useless to you but sometimes can even make the feeling more pronounced. By starting a new fiction book, or watching some new movies, you can help alleviate your loneliness by using them as an escape into a different world. On top of the help the book provides, you can have other friends or family read the same book and have discussions about it via text or video chat. You can also watch the same movie at the same time and text or talk about it together as you are watching.
Try a Hobby and Join a Community
Starting or immersing yourself in a hobby that you may not have picked up in a while is a great way to keep your mind busy and push feelings of loneliness away. On top of actually doing the hobby, there are plenty of communities online you can join which will help you feel connected to groups and individuals with the same interests and skillsets. Websites like Reddit and Facebook groups are great places to start.
Write and Journal
Sometimes our feelings of loneliness can be strongest when we keep our emotions inside. Without feeling like we have anyone we can talk to can really cause these thoughts to come to the surface. Keeping a journal is a great way to get these ideas that are stuck in your head out. Writing about how you feel or how your day is going can be very therapeutic. Another method is to try and focus on the positive. Keeping a gratitude journal where you write a few things you are thankful for every day can really help your brain refocus on what good things are going on for you rather than anything else.
Loneliness will happen and that is okay, but with a few different activities like the ones listed above, it doesn’t have to be a permanent feeling. Keeping your mind busy and not focused on what is making you feel so alone is the key to helping you realize that we are all in this together.