One in Four Australians feel Lonely. Why should it matter to you?

Listen to Akon’s song about loneliness below. It’s had 461 million views!

“Lonely, I’m so lonely.

I have nobody to call my own.’

I’m so lonely. I’m Mr. Lonely…”

Loneliness. Why do we feel lonely?

We could be in a room full of people, family and friends but we can still feel lonely.

We may feel lonely because we may have closed down, shut that barn door, pulled up that drawbridge over the moat and shut ourselves in our castle.

“Are you alright dear?” someone may ask.

“I’m fine, how are you?” we become experts in deflecting, denying and suppressing.

How does it start?

It starts when we feel misunderstood. No one understands me, they don’t understand what I’m feeling. They don’t understand my thoughts and ideas.

“Why is it so hard for people to understand me?”

ONE in four people are lonely in Australia, at least one day in a week.

The recent Australian Loneliness report found this alarming! It may be a problem in other countries as well. I believe that it’s a global problem.

Experts warn of a “loneliness epidemic” that could be our next public health crisis.

Humans are social creatures. That’s what makes us different from machines.

We need to be around people, with people, in some way that is meaningful to us. It could be going to get your coffee in the morning and John, your barista knows you. He calls you by name. You stand there and chat while he gets your coffee ready. You share good news and not so good news. That few minutes could be the most authentic connection in your whole day!

Using social media to connect to people is not quite the same.

A study said that people who are active on social media can feel depressed and lonely. They seem to have the perfect life, travel to exciting places, have the best of everything and yet feel lonely…

Many of us — including young people who appear popular and connected — lack strong meaningful relationships to enrich our lives and protect our physical and mental health, and wellbeing.

I call it the loss of authentic relationships. People who “get” you. People who relate to what you’re feeling. Good or bad. They hurt when you hurt. They’re happy when you’re happy. And it’s the same with you when they’re sad.

That’s what friends are for.

The opposite of loneliness is authenticity.

The antidote or cure for loneliness is friendship.

Please find someone, anyone, and touch their lives today.

You may not understand what they’re going through but at least they know that you care.

Thanks for reading, clapping, commenting and following me.

Ivonne Teoh

I write on #LinkedIn about #blockchain #AI #robots. The #futureofwork is a national & global emergency! Please check my #futureproof jobs series where I explore new mindsets, trends & new jobs/industries. Can we save our jobs? It won’t be easy and it’s best to start early.