Making New Friends Costs Money. It’s Worth It.
It might seem easier and cheaper to stay home watching Netflix, but Americans need to get out more if they’re going to feel less lonely.
Resist the temptation to stay home.
Photographer: Jordan Siemens/Stone RFLoneliness and social isolation are often discussed as afflictions of the aging process. Adult children move away, spouses and friends begin to die, and suddenly older people can find themselves spending an inordinate amount of time alone. The sense of isolation can have severe consequences for well-being. Studies have found that social isolation increases the odds of developing hypertension and dementia and even shortens life spans.
Except it isn’t only our aging population that is at high risk for loneliness. Young Americans age 15 to 24 spend 70% less time in person with friends than the same age group did 20 years ago, one of many alarming findings from a report last year by US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy warning of the growing toll of loneliness in America.