Margaret, one of my long-standing patients I cared for in General Practice a few years back, was a lovely lady in her early seventies. She lived alone with her cat and didn’t appear to have any contact with other family members, or friends.
She would attend religiously each week, coming by bus (either with an appointment or without), accompanied by her shopping list of “ailments”, none of which were ever helped by any medical intervention.
She would chat with the receptionists and complain bitterly about the unreliable bus service.
There isn’t a Medicare Item number for what was wrong with Margaret, but GPs and other health practitioners see many other Margarets and Michaels every day.
Loneliness can be hard to talk about, especially if you’re the one experiencing it.
We don’t, choosing to stay quiet, suffering in silence, afraid of being judged or worse still, being pitied.
The crazy thing is just how lonely so many of us are.
The latest findings from the 2026 State of the Nation report Understanding and Rebuilding Social Connection found 1 in 2 Australians report experiencing some form of social disconnection, and this is unchanged from the previous report in 2023.
This Loneliness Awareness Week (Aug 3rd to 9th), it’s time to take stock of where we’re at with loneliness, and how to tackle this more effectively.
#makeroomforconnection
Creating a culture of connection in Australia – Loneliness Awareness Week
Why are we so lonely?
There are a multitude of contributing factors.
- We’re living in increasingly densely populated urban environments, but without the same level of community cohesion.
- More people are choosing to live alone.
- Urban migration. More people are moving to a new area, town or country in search of a better job or prospects.
- More of us are working from home. Great for minimising distractions, but potentially socially isolating, and not made up for by Teams calls and Zoom meetings.
What do you think is contributing to the growing burden of loneliness?
Lonely, socially isolated, social disconnection.
What are we talking about here?
Feeling lonely is that distressing feeling that develops when you realise your existing relationships aren’t meeting your social needs.
This is where you know people, you might see them regularly, but you’re not on the same wavelength, you don’t share anything in common. You certainly don’t feel inclined to socialise with them. You feel increasingly separate.
And we’ve probably all been in that awkward situation where everyone is deeply engaged in conversation, laughing loudly at the “in” jokes and you’re surreptitiously checking the time to work out when you can make your earliest get-away.
This isn’t because there is something wrong with you, it’s a mismatch.
Creating friendships takes time, to build rapport and trust.
And you have to meet the right people – those you do “click” with.
And remember, it’s normal to feel lonely sometimes. It’s part of the human condition, so long as it doesn’t become a fixture to your being.
Social isolation is different. This is the physical state of being alone and where your opportunity or desire for interactions with others is less.
You may enjoy some alone time, and I know I do, but it can cause others distress and lead to loneliness.
What causes loneliness?
Sometimes it’s associated with loss.
Loss of a loved one, the breakdown of a relationship or divorce, losing your job, moving away from home for work, or retirement.
Sometimes it’s associated with change and uncertainty.
Starting a new job, becoming a new parent, becoming a carer, or adapting to a change of circumstances though natural disaster, accidents or tragedy.
Sometimes it’s associated with a change in our health status.
A new diagnosis, a chronic disease, dealing with poor health that’s associated with reduced function or mobility.
Fundamentally it’s connected to a life change.
Humans are social.
As humans we thrive in the company of others, because it helps us to feel seen, heard, and understood.
Social connection provides a sense of security and belonging. It helps us to know who we are, what our purpose is and helps to lower our stress.
It helps us cope with our difficulties and challenges.
It’s also vital to your health and well-being.
Research has shown that loneliness and social isolation carry a health risk, equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day and worse than drinking 6 standard drinks a day.
It increases our risk of heart disease (29%) and stroke (32%), mental illness and accelerates cognitive decline. It shortens lives.
We know you can’t fix loneliness or lack of social connection with a pill.
But we do know that a social prescription, where an individual is referred to local community supports, works.
And the beauty of this is, it’s low cost, it’s tailored to the individual to match what they are interested in and willing to engage with, it restores health and well-being and happiness.
Tackling loneliness.
There’s lots of helpful advice and suggestions on what to do for yourself if you’re lonely, but other than knowing you’re not alone in your distress, I’m not sure these are terribly helpful.
What can make a difference, is to be aware that loneliness is everywhere and to start noticing how others, including our own immediate family and circle of friends and our workmates, are. Looking out for small signs like social withdrawal. Someone who normally joins in with social events, starts making excuses to avoid them, or simply stays away.
Social Connection is one of the six core pillars of Lifestyle Medicine.
And Lifestyle Medicine Practitioners provide social prescription. Putting an individual in touch with a Link Worker, someone in the local community they can work with or with direct referrals to different social groups and associations.
The UK has been leading the way with social prescriptions. There they have Link workers that GPs and allied health practitioners can refer to, to share all the available non-medical community options in a person’ local area.
Here in Australia, we’re starting to follow suit, but of course what’s really needed is large-scale roll-out, but at least we’re heading in the right direction.
ASPIRE is the Australian Social Prescribing Institute of Research and Education, described in a consensus statement as “ a new way forward for healthcare that better connects patients (individuals) with community services and programs to help them better manage their health and well-being.”
This could be a suggestion to join a local club or group that the individual has expressed a previous interest in. It could be related to gardening, sport, arts and crafts, singing or cooking, anything that involves getting involved in an activity that includes other people.
Reaching out to make connection is very powerful, and sometimes it’s the smallest of gestures that can make a difference.
Of course, the right question to ask is, does this approach work?
Spoiler Alert: Yes.
An integrative review published in 2024 reported there are multiple opportunities for these programs to be offered at an individual and system level, but more needs to be done to guide national practice.
Room for improvement, but we’re on the right track.
Resolving our level of social disconnection is going to take time, which is why taking a moment, to create connection matters. Showing that little extra kindness and compassion for a fellow human being is what builds stronger and healthier societies
Reflecting on this, I think about all the Margarets and other lonely people out there, surviving but not thriving.
Why not volunteer?
One way to combat loneliness that is too overlooked, is the power of volunteering.
Giving freely of your time through regular (2-4 hours a week) meaningful social contact creates a shared sense of purpose and reduces your risk of loneliness by 62%, along with a reduced risk for depression. Even a single or short-term volunteering opportunity provides a brief boost in mood, but its greater benefits are achieved through consistency of habit.
Tina Williams is the current CEO of Volunteering WA. She and her team work tirelessly to encourage members of our community to get involved to support local projects and join local groups involved in supporting a cause you feel passionate about.
I’d love to know if you volunteer, and what your experience has been.
Key Points
There’s a lot of loneliness about.
1:2 are experiencing some form of social disconnection – loneliness or social isolation or both.
Having a friend (yes, we’re talking about having ONE friend here) can reduce loneliness and social isolation by 89%.
Spending 1-3 hours per week with friends can reduce the risk of loneliness and social isolation by 90%, while attending community events reduces those risks by 89%.
Getting social isn’t just about whether you’re an introvert or extrovert.
Social connection is essential to health and well-being.
Social Connection IS Medicine and keeps us well.
References
Sharman LS, McNamara N, Hayes S, Dingle GA. Social prescribing link workers-A qualitative Australian perspective. Health Soc Care Community. 2022 Nov;30(6):e6376-e6385. doi: 10.1111/hsc.14079. Epub 2022 Oct 22. PMID: 36271695; PMCID: PMC10092430.
https://www.who.int/groups/commission-on-social-connection/report
And yet, the government will be cutting the NDIS budget allocations for social, civic and community participation supports by 50 per cent starting 1 October 2026. How is that good for the wellbeing of our PWD and our society?