This episode invites listeners to rethink the holidays — not as obligations tied to the past, but as opportunities to design new traditions that honor who they are today. If the season feels heavy, lonely, or different this year, this episode offers permission, examples, and mindset shifts to help transform blues into possibility.
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If texting, emailing, social media, or Zoom calls are your primary means of communicating with others and leaving you feeling lonely or isolated — you may be at risk for two problems linked to higher risks for heart disease, heart attack, or stroke, according to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association in the Journal of the American Heart Association. To combat loneliness and isolation, try to replace some of your electronic back-and-forth with people with in-person meetings. Maybe you can find room in your schedule for a quick walk, cup of coffee, or brief lunch with a friend or colleague.
“Time spent face-to-face helps connect you to others and may make you feel less isolated,” explains Matthew Lee, a sociologist and research associate at Harvard University’s Human Flourishing Program. “Being physically co-present can help you feel more engaged with others, more valued, and more likely to feel a sense of shared identity — all things that may help ease loneliness. This is why some doctors are starting to engage in ‘social prescribing,’ including suggesting that people get involved in volunteering and other activities that build in-person social relationships.”
Although it’s not classified as a disease, loneliness is prevalent among us in great numbers. It is a silent disease since the lonely have no one to turn to. The lonely sit and stare at a TV, wait for the phone to ring, or wait for someone to knock at their door. Do you know a lonely, isolated person? Stop by to say hi. Bring him/her a surprise. It doesn’t take much to make a difference and lighten the load of feeling lonely.
