The Loneliness Epidemic
Being Lonely Has The Same Health Effects As Smoking A Pack Of Cigarettes A Day
Since the industrial revolution and the mass urbanization which created huge cities and mass influxes of people, reports of loneliness and it’s side affects have been increased dramatically. In a world which seems to be increasingly connected online we have failed to calculate the impact these technologies now have on our connections in real life. The human now feels much lonelier than 50 years ago and the reason for this is because of three main reasons: the industrial revolution (urbanization), social media and money.
The Industrial Revolution - Urbanization
The industrial revolution sparked a widespread migration into large industrial cities where the living conditions were horrible, the houses were crammed together and waste was dumped onto sidewalks. Traditional communities which once thrived now shrank in size as people rushed to work in factories where a salary was being paid. Factory workers felt alienated from the world, their work, others and themselves because of the way this new system operated. You would go to work, work you didn’t care about, work for someone who didn’t care about you and then live in a house designed by a person who didn’t care about you.
Loneliness is not a bad thing, it used to be a necessary survival mechanism to ensure communities of humans stuck together, where they were more likely to survive. However now it has transformed into a deadly epidemic which is twice as deadly as obesity and as deadly as being an alcoholic or smoking a pack of cigarettes per day. If you’re lonely, your mortality risk shoots up by 26%.
Industrialization promoted individualism and personal freedom to travel to wherever they liked however these qualities are linked to loneliness, living alone is one of the most significant causes of loneliness. Loneliness has become a deadly feeling which is fueled and backed by trillion dollar companies. Here are some ways big companies profit from loneliness:
Big Pharma sells us anti-depressants
Junk food sellers profit because when people get sad they are more likely to eat junk food
Social media companies profit from our retention on their services which we go on if we are lonely and have nothing to do
Government keeps us divided, keeping the power of masses under control
The huge number of people who report they are lonely makes this such a deadly problem which if not handled properly will lead to millions of people dead and sad.
Social Media - The Disconnect
social media disconnects people from reality and makes them so focused on how many people they have added on Instagram they fail to go out into the real world and make real friends, leading to loneliness.
Due to the business model of large social media companies their apps are not designed to offer seamless long-form texting and relationship forming however are made to entice you to watch videos for as long as possible without clicking off. The messaging feature is only another way in which they get you to watch more videos.
Now that we have a device which allows us to never be bored we take every opportunity to use it when we find ourselves bored. A good example of this I have noticed recently is on buses where people are dead silent throughout the entire ride and everyone has their heads down locked onto a small screen. Before the invention of the phone people would talk to others and socialize if they got bored however now people seem to never be bored. We have an excuse now to not talk to people and some people even call those who go out of their way to socialize “weird”.
Social Media is used to polarize and offend people in order to gain retention on their platforms and this has an impact on people’s social lives which might be affected by things they have seen online. Relationships are broken because of social media.
The reason social media works is because it creates a false sense of connection and belonging in people which makes them feel wanted and important. They are deprived of these feelings all of the day when they work in companies with thousands of other employee’s so are very eager to stay on their phones in order to feel powerful and meaningful for once.
What social media lacks is the physical element of communication and socializing such as the nonverbal cues, physical presence and emotional connection between all people. Seeing someone in real life is so much more fulfilling because you know that they really want to see you and you can see who they really are. Social media leads to feelings of FOMO (fear of missing out) when you compare yourself to others on the platforms who may have more things than you and flaunt it online. This seperation between online and reality is what makes many people feel sad and lonely however in real life with real humans this feeling is bridged by the fact that despite them having more than you, they are still human and you can still talk to them, whereas online you cannot.
People online constantly feel the pressure to be perfect and show why they are different and why they deserve your follow. They hide who they really are and who they want to be in order to get followers and friends to like them which makes no sense because they will only like you for the person you are pretending to be and not who you really are. A lack of authenticity online is the problem with social media. In real life you are who you are. The pressure to be someone else may still be present but it is certainly less. You can show them who you really are with your words and the way you present yourself.
Money - The Ultimate Illusion
The chase for money isolated us because in order to get money we must sacrifice relationships. First you must understand why you want more money, many will answer to buy a bigger house, to buy a nice car. Ultimately you want to be more happy and feel better, chasing money will not bring you this happiness. What you need is relationships that are meaningful and to make memories and experiences which you can remember all of your life.
Money is definitely important but you have to make it work for you and not you work for it. Once you begin to work for your money you forget that you only wanted to make the money to be happy which you aren’t knowing you will have to work 8 hours everyday of the week until you are 70.
Everyone is now chasing money and not happiness, joy, love, warmth, relationships and all that is good to life. We have lost our way and must rediscover it. You make money so that you can have fun and do things you like doing, find ways to minimize time spent making enough money to support your lifestyle and then you will work to live and not live to work.
We must all find the reason why we live. Is it to destroy this planet? To destroy coral reefs? To kill billions of animals which we don’t eat? To make a quick buck? To live together and help others? To start a family?
Is the government not meant to be the tribe leader, to tell us our mission? Why is it us against them? What went wrong? We really aren’t as smart as some people make us out to be.
In my opinion we must all have the same mission and strive to achieve it. I do not know the perfect mission but I am sure that anything is better than anything.
Remember why you live. Do what you must to live how you would like. Trust no one, only yourself. If you want to be rich so you can live like a king then so be it. If you want to live on a small island and be self-sufficient for the rest of your life make it happen.
We are individuals but have forgotten that to stay alive we must stay together.
We are not Chinese, Australian, African, American, we are humans.
Go out and talk to people. Do not become lonely, make this a priority.
Thanks for reading,
Max