Essay Example on Loneliness: An Intense Feeling of Sadness and Isolation

Loneliness is an intense feeling of sadness and isolation. This feeling is present even when the individual is in the presence of other people. It is the absence of vital social relations as well as the absence of affection in existing relationships. Developmental loneliness is a recognized category of loneliness present in people with various predispositions. These include specific developmental deficits, personal insecurities, among others (Cacioppo & Boomsma, 2014). The other subtypes are internal and situational loneliness. The study of loneliness as a mental health concern had not intensified until about a decade ago. This was when specialists attributed the increasing intensity of loneliness in the general population to the growing numbers of mental illnesses. This paper will explore the management of loneliness and seek to establish whether it qualifies as a mental disorder.

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Developmental loneliness is a type that occurs when an individual is not able to create a balance between their independence and self-reliance with their sense of intimacy. This results in feelings of emptiness due to the loss of understanding and meaning of one's life. Loneliness is mostly detected between childhood and adolescence and again after the age of 65 (Holt-Lunstad et al, 2015). Loneliness is most rampant during adolescence, as this is a time when teenagers crave attention and love. This age group also lacks adequate coping skills as compared to the old, when it comes to triggers of loneliness. Loneliness among the elderly is often not detected because most of these individuals have well developed coping mechanisms such as keeping themselves occupied. Also, these are people that do not need as much approval and attention as compared to adolescents. Chronic loneliness presents with a wide array of symptoms. These include insomnia, lack of energy, feelings of hopelessness, and worthlessness, as well as a craving for physical warmth. Desire of physical warmth can be seen in individuals who take unusual comfort things such as warm blankets, warm beverages, etcetera, and use such things as a source of solace. The sense of isolation has a direct effect on the health and wellbeing of the individual. Loneliness affects the physical health of the person through reduced appetite as well as a reduced incentive for self-care. With time, this state of mind can predispose to mental and physical disorders presenting with similar symptoms.

The first of these disorders are depression (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2015). While a lonely person may exhibit some of the symptoms of depression, these people must attain the diagnostic criteria in DSM-V to be diagnosed with a depressive disorder. The diagnostic criteria for depression are bound by both symptomatology and a strict time frame. According to DSM-V, depressive symptoms must be present for at least two or more weeks (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These symptoms must include either depressed mood for most of the day with a loss of interest in pleasurable activities. These symptoms must also interfere with the daily functioning of the individual. Other symptoms include weight changes, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, chronic fatigue, and suicidal ideation.

Alcoholism is another precipitating factor for loneliness. These individuals engage in heavy drinking. Once they regain sobriety, the emptiness and helplessness kick in, and they drink again. This becomes a vicious cycle that eventually leads to addiction and dependence. It is also a poor prognostic factor for this kind of loneliness; this is because these persons always tend to use alcohol as a solution to this problem. Loneliness can also predispose to borderline personality disorder (BPD) The failure to balance between self-independence and intimacy may eventually result in features of BPD. Chronic loneliness may cause these individuals to exert frantic efforts to avoid abandonment, whether real or abandoned. They are emotionally abusive to their romantic partners with constant nags and persecutory ideations about being abandoned or rejected. This applies to other relationships as well. This eventually leads to intense and unstable interpersonal relationships. These manifestations, along with others like suicidal behavior, dissociative symptoms, and destructive impulsivity, satisfy the DSM-V criteria for the diagnosis of BPD (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Loneliness may also increase the risk of developing a schizotypal personality disorder. This disorder is characterized by impairments in identity and self-direction, impairments in interpersonal functioning such as lack of empathy and intimacy, among others. These manifestations, coupled with pathological personality traits such as eccentricity and detachment, contribute to the DSM-V criteria for schizotypal personality disorder. This disorder further impairs social interactions and worsens the loneliness.

These individuals may also suffer from suicidal ideation alone without other symptoms of a mental disorder. This is because they often feel alone and unwanted. Many of them hold the opinion that the world would not be any different without them and that no one would miss them if they were gone. Chronic loneliness also commonly predisposes to sleep disorders. These individuals present with reduced quality and quantity of sleep. They are fatigued continuously from inadequate rest and are not able to function optimally in their daily activities. Loneliness has been linked to cognitive disturbances seen in Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia (Cacioppo & Boomsma, 2014). A biological hypothesis has been proposed to explain this phenomenon. It has been studies that loneliness leads to the accumulation of amyloid protein in the brain. Amyloid protein is a dense deposition of immunoglobin light chains in various body tissues and is pathognomic in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (Mushtaq et al, 2014). Loneliness has also been proven to predispose to physical illness. These include obesity. Obesity brings along its baggage of comorbidities such as diabetes and hypertension. These individuals lack the incentive for self-care and end up with multiple health problems for which they always have to seek medical treatment. This further worsens the loneliness.

There are several risk factors for the development of developmental loneliness. Personal inadequacies are one such factor. This is the feeling of not being good enough, developmentally resulting from childhood events such as shaming authority figures, abusive upbringing, among others. These people develop into adults that are unable to maintain social relations because they feel undeserving of their romantic partners, friends as well as professional ties. They then tend to withdraw from these interactions, leading to the development of loneliness (Cacioppo et al, 2015). Physical or psychological disabilities is also a strong risk factor for developmental loneliness. Most individuals who are born challenged either physically or psychologically experience difficulties cultivating social relationships. While for some, this may be due to the fear of being different or being seen as so, some of these individuals are generally avoided by other people. This is especially seen during childhood and adolescence, where members of this age group seem to avoid interactions with people who look different or have any form of disability. Both of these scenarios create socialization anxiety for these individuals, making it very difficult for them to establish friendships and intimate relationships. A large percentage of these differently-abled individuals end up lonely, due to fear of criticism, rejection, and general socialization anxiety.

Another risk factor for this kind of loneliness is poverty and living arrangements. People of lower socioeconomic status, especially children and adolescents, may find it difficult to interact with other people. This is because of the fear of not fitting in and the feeling of feeling left out. They may also feel embarrassed due to their social or living situations and may avoid social interactions to keep these situations to themselves. Social marginalization is also a risk factor for developmental loneliness. Some groups of people that may experience this kind of risk include the elderly, people belonging to racial or cultural minorities, members of the LGBTQ community, among others. Significant separations during childhood have been proven to lead to loneliness and depression (Cacioppo et al, 2015). Children who are separated from their families miss out on the warmth, love, and affection offered in a family setting. They may later develop aggression, conduct disorders, mood disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, among other mental disorders. Others fall into alcoholism and substance abuse to fill the emptiness they feel inside.

Loneliness can be recognized from its symptomatology alone. It can, however, result in complications that are more obvious and easier to identify. Compensatory mechanisms of this state are diverse, ranging from behavioral to cognitive changes. The most common behavioral coping mechanism of loneliness is alcohol and substance abuse. A section of people with addiction disorders has underlying loneliness and even depression. Children suffering from developmental loneliness may not show the obvious signs but may have unusual behavioral changes such as aggression. These children are not able to recognize the feeling of loneliness as is experienced at older ages but may act it out. They may not be able to define the feeling of emptiness, but due to these feelings, these children may even develop behavioral disorders such as to conduct disorder. Conduct disorder is primarily characterized by aggression, violation of rules, as well as the destruction of property. In older individuals, loneliness may result in suicidal ideations, seen during attempts to take one's own life. As the individual grows older, their social interactions are significantly compromised, and they have dysfunctional relationships. These people are also prone to the development of personality disorders such as borderline and schizotypal personality disorders.

Loneliness is a state that requires intervention and management, regardless of the cause. The development of social skills is a vital therapeutic intervention for these individuals (Cacioppo et al, 2015). A professional therapist or psychologist can assist this. Encouraging these walking these individuals through the steps of social interaction through ways such as phone calls, nonverbal communication, and reducing social awkwardness is a significant first step in overcoming loneliness. These interpersonal cues will enable these individuals to create and maintain social relationships. Another platform for intervention is targeting maladaptive thinking. Most people suffering from chronic loneliness may exhibit negative perceptions and thoughts towards social interaction.

Conclusion

An example is the assumption and fear of criticism after initiating communication with someone else. Others may experience excessive guilt and may feel responsible for other people's feelings of anger or sadness. Targeting these ideologies is of primary importance in sparking the incentive for socialization and the establishment of relationships. Another mode of intervention for these people is the creation of social interaction platforms (Cacioppo et al, 2015). These include peer group meetings and even parties. These individuals can also be helped through social support. This involves offering help that is geared towards an intervention for the cause of the loneliness. An example is providing counseling services to those with personal insecurities.

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