“Pandemic of loneliness.” You’ve probably heard that phrase, and although it might seem extreme, it highlights how loneliness is becoming a problem for more and more people. Chronic loneliness plays a significant part, but why?
Learn what distinguishes chronic loneliness from loneliness in general and how to help your members cope.
What is chronic loneliness?
It’s easy to put all “loneliness” into one bucket. But loneliness and chronic loneliness are not the same. In general, loneliness develops when your social needs are not met. We’ve all felt this at some point—from having a bad day to being left out of an activity—but it goes away when the situation resolves.
Chronic loneliness, on the other hand, happens when your social interaction needs are continually unmet over weeks, months or years. Perhaps a loved one has passed, or physical health issues limit social activity. Whatever the case, chronic loneliness can lead to mental and physical health problems, including depression, heart disease and a heightened risk for diabetes.
So how can you address chronic loneliness for your members? Start by recognizing the signs of chronic loneliness:
1. No close friends.
A chronically lonely individual may have casual friends or acquaintances, but they don’t feel connected to anyone or that those people understand them.
2. Overwhelming feelings of isolation.
Whether alone or surrounded by people, a chronically lonely person feels alienated — like they’re on the outside looking in.
3. Feelings of self-doubt and a lack of self-worth.
Chronically lonely people often feel “less than” or not good enough.
4. A lack of reciprocated connections.
During social interactions, a lonely person feels they are not seen or heard or that interactions are shallow.
5. Exhaustion and burnout when trying to socialize.
Chronic loneliness leaves people feeling drained, giving way to sleep problems, poor immune health and more.
Health effects of chronic loneliness
Loneliness doesn’t just make people feel sad. Although it certainly takes an emotional toll, chronic loneliness can also spill over and affect physical and mental health. Several health issues are exacerbated by loneliness, including:
Increased risk of death from all causes
Chronic loneliness has the potential to shorten a person’s lifespan. According to research, loneliness has been estimated to increase mortality from all causes and shave off approximately 15 years from someone’s life. For comparison, that’s equal to being obese or smoking 15 cigarettes per day.
Increased risk of depression
Is it loneliness or depression? Turns out, it’s sometimes both. Chronic loneliness often leads to depression, with individuals suffering from depressive symptoms such as being less happy, less satisfied and more pessimistic.
The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) asked participants to answer questions about lacking companionship, feeling left out and feeling isolated to examine their loneliness on a seven-point scale. Higher loneliness scores correlated to depressive symptoms, with researchers observing that people with greater loneliness scores experienced increasing depression over time. In fact, loneliness was linked to one in five cases of depression after one year.
Increased risk of cognitive decline and dementia
Living alone, having little social contact and lacking social support all give way to loneliness and further health risks. According to NASEM, individuals suffering from chronic loneliness have a 50 percent higher risk of dementia, creating similar risks as physical inactivity, Type 2 diabetes and depression.
Increased risk of cardiovascular disease
Poor social relationships can be heartbreaking. In fact, the same NASEM study found that social isolation and loneliness lead to a 29 percent increased risk of heart disease and a 32 percent increased risk of stroke. Additionally, heart failure patients who are lonely face a four times increased risk of death.
Helping those facing chronic loneliness
People suffering from chronic loneliness often end up in emergency departments—the most expensive form of care. And it makes sense. After all, when you’re struggling, you can’t engage with and prioritize your health at the right time. However, there’s light at the end of the tunnel when plans take the right steps to help.
Determine who is chronically lonely.
Which members are struggling with chronic loneliness? Take steps to uncover which groups are most lonely and the social determinants of health (SDOH) contributing to loneliness. Inequity may play a role, as members who lack access to the right care are more likely to have higher SDOH needs.
Unfortunately, identifying lonely members is difficult because their engagement is already low. To help, lean on a combination of technology and human connection to identify those who suffer from chronic loneliness and devise evidence-based treatments.
Provide guidance for decreasing loneliness.
Put yourself in your members’ shoes and understand their distress. How can you help relieve their loneliness? Lending support from multiple angles can make a difference:
- Encourage chronically lonely members to speak up when their loneliness won't go away.
- Emphasize the value of in-person connection. If the pandemic taught us anything, it’s that virtual interactions and social media aren’t the same.
- Suggest new activities. Selfless acts — such as volunteering — elevate mood and create a sense of purpose.
“Chronic loneliness” may be a newer concept in health care, but loneliness itself is as old as time. Because of this, we have a jumping-off point for helping members. What will you do to combat chronic loneliness?
Discover new approaches to treat chronic loneliness
Left untreated, chronic loneliness can have ripple effects on members’ health. The risks of depression, heart problems and dementia increase substantially among the lonely, so we need solutions. Taking steps to determine those most at risk of chronic loneliness and providing helpful guidance can open the door to relief.
But there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why Pyx Health uses a combination of human compassion and supportive technology to help your members. Our app provides activities and evidence-based screenings to improve loneliness at scale. With it, we connect individuals to the right resources at the right time, and our compassionate support staff — ANDYs — offer further support, companionship and connections to health plans and community resources.
Could Pyx Health be a fit for your plan? Explore our loneliness infographic to get more insights into loneliness and learn more about our solution.
