How to Help Older Adults Cope with Loneliness

The changes that come with aging can make us feel less useful, lonely and isolated. Reports show that loneliness often is cause for anxiety and depression in older adults. The good news is, you can overcome loneliness.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Seek support from your peers. Talking about the good old days with family members your own age can help to ease the solitude. Keeping in touch with friends from the past also helps you to stay connected to others.

2. Visit the local senior center, especially for meals. Mealtime is about more than eating. The camaraderie that comes with sharing meals together is one of the best ways to interact socially.

3. Volunteer at a local hospital, school, church or library; it can help you to renew your sense of purpose in life. Volunteer activities allow you not only to reach out to others, but also to feel needed. It’s also a great opportunity to develop new friendships and work on maintaining a positive outlook.

4. Get on the Internet. Whether you participate in chat rooms or on blogs with others who share similar interests, enroll in an online class or surf the Web, not only will you be communicating with others, you will find yourself feeling less lonely. There are new websites targeting senior audiences being developed every day. With the number of older adults using the Internet increasing at such a rapid rate, interacting with others online offers a unique opportunity to build new relationships.

Tips & Warnings

• Studies indicate that maintaining close friendships may be more important to seniors than family ties when it comes to combating loneliness.
• New research seems to suggest a possible connection between loneliness and a rise in blood pressure, especially among older adults. Although blood pressure tends to rise naturally with age, some researchers now believe that loneliness may increase it more.

[roseofgod]

on 10/14/2009 Intretesting, God bless you, and thank you.