What is loneliness?
Loneliness is often described as the feeling we get when the quality of our social
contacts and relationships is not meeting our needs.
Loneliness is not the same as being alone. You can choose to be alone or have
periods of solitude and be happy and content with that decision, while some
people would feel lonely doing this. Others may have partners, friends and lots of
social contacts but still feel lonely.
Everyone feels lonely from time to time, but loneliness is also a highly personal
experience - so everyone’s experience of loneliness is different. Loneliness
however can lead to poor health and wellbeing when a person feels distressed
about their social situation.
Loneliness is not in itself a mental health problem. But, being lonely increases our
chances of poor mental health and having a mental illness increases our chances
of experiencing loneliness.
The information and resources on this page have been informed by 'Ending Loneliness Together', an incorporated body and registered charity created by a national network of universities and industry partners.