Blog - Beach House Rehab Center
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April 18, 2019

How to Overcome Loneliness

Are you wondering how to overcome loneliness? Many people experience loneliness at some point in their life, but prolonged loneliness can feel difficult to conquer. Loneliness can affect both your mental and emotional state and foster a sense of hopelessness that can be both confusing and disheartening. There are different ways in which you can overcome loneliness and get back to feeling like you are a part of a larger community and that you are not alone in either your struggles or your triumphs.

Sometimes people feel lonely while going through recovery. Whether you have just finished an alcohol detox, or in-patient rehab, it may feel like you are all alone during this difficult time of your life and you have no one to relate to. Loneliness can make it feel like you are an outcast, but to overcome the feeling, you have to face that assumption head-on and realize that it’s not true in order to  take the steps you need to in order to overcome your loneliness.

Below are tips on how to overcome loneliness and get back to feeling a sense of community.

Tips for Overcoming Loneliness

Loneliness Is Just A Feeling, It Isn’t a Fact

Loneliness and depression can feel definitive, but it’s important to acknowledge that loneliness is just a feeling, not a reality. Even though you may be feeling lonely, you are not in fact alone and isolated. As a part of our survival instinct as human beings, we take notice of feelings that alert us to pain, danger, or fear, which is why loneliness can feel dominant over any other feelings, but despite feelings being all-encompassing at times, the feeling of loneliness is temporary.

When you’re feeling lonely, try to take stock of what you are feeling and acknowledge these emotions  are temporary. By acknowledging that you are lonely, you can begin the process of taking active steps to mitigate your loneliness and cultivate a sense of community with other like-minded people.

Talk to Someone You Trust About How You Are Feeling

One of the most deceptive aspects of loneliness or depression is how it can make you feel like you are an outcast that is alone in the world without any friends, but that isn’t true. Instead of withdrawing into yourself and your feelings of loneliness, reach out to someone you trust and talk to them about how you are feeling. If you don’t have anyone you trust to talk to about your feelings, try to cultivate a new friendship or reach out to a professional. It’s important to reach out and talk to friends or a professional about how you are feeling so that you don’t continue to fuel your feelings of isolation.

Make a Plan to Deal With Your Loneliness

Just like with many other things in life, it can be useful to formulate a plan of how you’re going to overcome your loneliness. Once you have a plan, you have a path forward that you can work towards to yield the results you are looking for. To make this plan, take stock of the emotional and mental habits you have that are fueling your loneliness.

Are you isolating yourself? Are you dwelling in negative thoughts about yourself? Take note of these habits and make counteractive measures a part of your plan. If you’re isolating yourself, make a plan to get out and have social interaction with people who care about you.

Channel Your Attention Into Helping Others

When you’re feeling lonely, it can be easy to slip into a cycle of focusing on your own loneliness that perpetuates those feelings. To help overcome your loneliness, try to focus on the needs and feelings of other people. This will help put into perspective that there is much more happening in the world and that there are people in need that you can be helping. By channeling your feelings of loneliness into helping other people, you can also improve your perspective on the world.

Find a Group of People Like You and Show Up

If you’re feeling lonely, it can help to find a group of like-minded people who share an interest or experience with you. You will be able to identify with them and form a sense of community that can help to abate feelings of loneliness. Whether it’s a hiking club, yoga studio, or anything else, finding community with other people that share similar interests or qualities that you do can help you to work towards overcoming loneliness.

If you are struggling with addiction or in recovery, going to meetings or reaching out to rehab alumni services can be a great way to find a group of people that will understand your struggles. For this to help in overcoming loneliness, it is vital that you show up. Make a commitment and stick to it so that you can associate with like-minded individuals to help overcome your feelings of loneliness.

If you notice loneliness and withdrawal in a friend or family member, this could be a sign that your loved one is an alcoholic, using other drugs, or suffering from some type of mental health issue. Contact us at Beach House Recovery today to get the help you or a loved one may need. There is no reason to battle loneliness alone.

Sources:

  • Medical News Today. “How Can We Overcome Loneliness?” Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320534.php.