No one wants to feel isolated or lonesome. After all, humans are social beings and need regular interaction for their physical and mental health. As such, when you’re stuck in loneliness, you may feel like something is missing from your life. It can become a significant problem that causes distress!
Even if you don’t have many close friends or communities, there are ways that you can overcome these emotions. Knowing what to do and how to fill your time can be the antidote to unhappy solitude. Here are ten activities to beat the loneliness that most people forget.
1. Read Books
Books are a great way to immerse yourself in something engaging and interesting while alone. If you like to read and have fallen off the habit recently, why not try getting back into it? With all the available fiction and non-fiction genres out there, you’re able to occupy your time exactly as you desire. This can help to beat loneliness, as a lot of people who feel lonely partially feel this way due to listless, monotonous boredom.
On top of that, books provide numerous ways to get social! There’s something magical about meeting other people who are passionate about similar books. You can get recommendations from each other and discuss what you’ve read. There are even book clubs and communities you can join that provide weekly or monthly socializing opportunities!
As an additional benefit, reading books is also highly beneficial for your health. Studies say it can:
- Improve brain power and prevent brain aging
- Help you sleep more easily and with higher quality
- Boost your empathy (when reading fiction), allowing for better social connections
- Boost happiness and emotional resilience
2. Take Up A Hobby
Hobbies are a great way to meet people and occupy your time. They add a sense of routine and enrichment to everyday life that can help to beat loneliness. This is especially true if you’re retired or otherwise have a lot of time to spare. The fact that many hobbies are or can be social adds even more value for those who are feeling lonesome! You can try to:
- Revisit old hobbies that you once loved but didn’t have time or energy for.
- Take a class to experience a bunch of new activities that could become a new hobby.
- Take an online course for an interesting activity or skill.
- Try something out that you’ve always been curious about.
- Join a local hobby club or group as a beginner.
- Seek online communities for various different hobbies.
- Start your own group or community for a more obscure or lesser-known hobby.
3. Express Your Emotions
If you’re trying to beat loneliness, you’re also probably trying to beat several other emotions. Many people try to handle being lonely by pushing these feelings away and burying them. Unfortunately, not only does this not work, but it’s also harmful to your health, say studies. It can even make those emotions stronger and serve as the root for multiple negative and unhelpful behaviors.
Expressing how you feel may not completely solve lonesome emotions, but it’s a good starting point. It gives you the chance to let out what you feel instead of bottling it up, which can help you understand the root of your loneliness. This also allows you to take a moment to reflect on these feelings through lenses that are more comfortable. You’ll be able to view your emotions in their expressed form or consider them through a third-person view. Try to express your emotions by:
- Journaling or keeping a diary.
- Using art, such as painting, writing, or singing.
- Exercising to reduce tension.
- Talking to someone you trust.
- Seeking therapy or professional help.
4. Volunteer
Volunteering is an incredible use of your time for numerous reasons. It benefits your community in multiple ways and also has both mental and physical benefits for you. For those looking to beat loneliness, it’s an extra effective method because:
- It connects you to your community and helps you meet others within it.
- It makes you feel useful and helpful, allowing you to feel proud of your actions.
- It reframes your world through the lens of gratitude, so being lonely no longer bothers you as much as it did.
- It enriches your life and provides life satisfaction, making you happier, say studies.
- It gives you something to do in your spare time when loneliness would be most prominent.
There are many different ways that you can volunteer for a non-profit organization of your choice. Find a cause that inspires you and that you want to support so you’re passionate about what you do. You can volunteer at care homes, animal shelters, food kitchens, aid organizations, and more!
5. Get Active
Exercising on its own is a great way to beat loneliness. It helps you to express negative tension and releases feel-good hormones that boost your mood, according to research. If your loneliness tends to affect your ability to sleep, exercise can also counteract that by allowing better rest.
Exercise also gives you the chance to socialize with others. You can do this by:
- Joining a gym and striking up conversations with fellow gym-goers.
- Participating in team sports or casual sports leagues.
- Taking an exercise-related class or joining an exercise group.
The best part about getting active is that it doesn’t have to be exceedingly strenuous. If you have trouble with intense activities, you still have options. Join a bowling team, for example, or take up yoga! You can even just regularly go for walks in a popular park to meet people.
6. Talk To Strangers
If you struggle with social interaction, you may be absolutely horrified by the thought of talking to strangers! But research has shown that regular interactions with random people can play a big role when you want to beat loneliness. Chatting with a cashier, greeting a barista, or talking to someone unoccupied on public transportation are all great ways to do this.
Human beings are social creatures and crave connections with each other. Just saying hello, asking about someone’s day, or engaging in small talk can be enough to make you feel less alone.
7. Join An Online Community
A lot of people who struggle with lonesome feelings don’t have time to go out and socialize. Admittedly, for those who are busy, disabled, or otherwise unable to spend time in social settings, this poses a real problem. Luckily, we live in the 21st century, so you don’t need to go out of your way to find communities!
Online communities exist for all sorts of interests, belief systems, groups, and hobbies. You can find a place to share things, make friends, and connect with others on so many different topics on the internet. For example, you can:
- Scour Facebook for hobby groups, local community events, and groups of similar people.
- Join a Discord server for people with similar interests to you.
- Get in touch with old friends on various forms of social media.
- Create group chats on multiple platforms for friends, loved ones, or even new acquaintances.
- Participate in forums.
If you struggle with online connectivity and find technology to be a little daunting, fret not! As long as you know how to use Google, you can look up tutorials on virtually anything and everything.
8. Do Some Gardening
Gardening is a fulfilling hobby and gives your body much-needed exercise without extra strain or intensity. You’ll get fresh air, be able to grow healthy, fresh food, and be able to chat with your neighbors as you work.
You can also use gardening to be social. When you’ve learned your stuff, volunteer with these skills for various projects. Or start now as a beginner by joining groups of gardeners! Plus, a good home garden is always an excuse to invite someone over for drinks! It’s a rewarding activity and studies have found it can beat loneliness by connecting you with communities. In the process, it improves various interpersonal skills, too!
9. Adopt Or Play With A Pet
Animals may not be the same species as you, but that doesn’t mean they can’t help you beat loneliness! Studies indicate that having a pet can prevent feelings of loneliness. If you’ve been thinking of adopting or buying a pet and have the resources to do so, this might be your sign to go for it! You’ll also get to join social communities of pet owners or animal lovers!
Can’t adopt your own furry, scaly, or feathered friend? Volunteer at an animal shelter, take a gig babysitting pets, or offer services as a dog walker! There are lots of ways that you can still get interactions with these awesome animals, and they’ll open up chances to connect to humans, too.
10. Do Typically Social Activities Alone
It can take a long time to beat loneliness. Besides, the truth is that you can’t always find someone to spend time with. Learning to be comfortable and confident on your own, cherishing solitude, is crucial to beating the negative feeling of isolation.
One great way to do this is by embarking on various activities that are typically associated with social interaction. Human beings often put different things into unnecessary boxes like this. In reality, there is absolutely no rule that insists that these activities have to be performed socially. These activities might include:
- Going to see a movie in the cinema.
- Eating out at a nice restaurant.
- Going on road trips.
- Visiting a museum or gallery.
- Going to a wine tasting.
- Shopping for various items.
So pick an activity that you’d want to do with someone else and go it alone! The more you do these things, the less lonely you’ll feel, and the better you’ll like your own company. There’s no more effective way to beat loneliness than by learning to enjoy it instead. If you need some help getting used to the solitude, bring along a book to read during lulls in the day!
Final Thoughts On Some Effective Ways To Beat Loneliness That Most People Forget
Loneliness can be an overwhelming and frightening emotion, especially if you don’t have a good social circle. But remember that there are ways to overcome this! Changing up your routine to include the ten activities you can use to beat loneliness with work wonders for your happiness and interaction.
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