When You Are Feeling All Alone

Mother Teresa once said, “The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for.”

Have you ever felt so lonely that you thought your heart was breaking and you couldn’t make it through the night? Have you looked at your life and wondered where you went wrong and asked why you deserve to be so alone?

Unfortunate circumstances or our own decisions can sometimes put us in a position where we have no one to turn to. Even if your lifestyle is a comfortable one, the pain of feeling unloved can be so overwhelming that you can start to think about not wanting to be here.

More suicides take place during the summer, especially in late July and August, than at any other time of year. No one knows why this is the case, but emotional pain seems to become more intense for some people at this time of year.

If you have been thinking about taking your own life, your mental state could be more fragile than you may believe, and you should seek help as soon as possible.

To help you heal, it’s crucial to make connections with other people. Isolating yourself is only going to make you feel worse. I know people who have gotten roommates just to have another human being in the house, and it has helped. Others who are in need of companionship get involved in community events or go back to school. The idea is to spend time with other people, so you can feel their warmth and let it help you out of your pain. A warm smile from a friend can make the difference between hiding under the covers and getting out into the world to see what it has to offer. Many folks find going out to be far easier with someone else than by themselves.

Texting and emailing are helpful, but they can never take the place of a real conversation with a real person right in front of you. I know people who text each other all day long, and they say it makes them feel more connected. Don’t get me wrong: I love getting messages from my sweetheart, but it will never take the place of hearing her reassuring voice and feeling her gentle touch. And touch can make the difference between living a healthy life and living one that is sickly.

If you spend more time in front of a computer or television than with your fellow human beings, you are setting yourself up for any loneliness you may already feel to get worse. It is so important for you to get out of your own head for at least a few hours each day.

Life is about balance, and it is important that we learn to take care of ourselves and each other. When you are done with your reading, pick up the phone and call a friend or a relative and make some plans to get together. You, and the person you reach, will be better for it.