Loneliness has been romanticized, hypothesized, criticized, and realized time and again, for years and years, and still it exists as it never has before.
It is an isolating condition we all, I believe, have experienced at one (or many) points in our lives.
A Minister of Loneliness has been appointed in the United Kingdom to address social isolation across all age groups. Loneliness has been aligned with so many mental illnesses that it may itself be one of the most widely-spread mental ailments of all time.
Being lonely is depressing; in fact, it can be both the cause and result of depression.
We don’t really talk about it.
It takes a certain strength to speak about loneliness, and you don’t have that strength if you are lonely.
Loneliness is easy; you can do it all by yourself.
But you don’t need to be alone to be lonely. You can easily feel alone in a city full of strangers, or with a small group of friends, anywhere, or any time.
I have been lonely, in different stages, at different times in my life. It feels lonely just to write it down, but you cannot address a personal issue unless you are prepared to admit to it.
Loneliness is a state of mind, a sign of the times, and can be one of the greatest conundrums. Not always emptiness, loneliness can be the result, or the cause, of anxiety. Loneliness can take you deep inside your mind, or your mind can lead you to loneliness.
Fear of being alone can only make you lonelier, the effects felt from the brain through the body.
It is confusing.
In a world where there are more people than ever; at a time when communication is more accessible, (if not instant), the state of loneliness has never been more present. Still, loneliness is one of those topics many people will not speak about.
Overcoming loneliness cannot be as simple as simply saying ‘find a friend’, or ‘talk about it’, but it can be a start.
Let’s talk.
Let’s see.
Know when the feeling isn’t right, and begin there.

©2017 j.g. lewis

Only the lonely
Know the way I feel tonight
Only the lonely
Know this feelin’ ain’t right
                                  -Roy Orbison