You Are Not Alone

In my childhood, I had a neighbour who lived right next to me who was always very lonely and isolated. She always seemed very separate from everyone else and rarely went out of their house. A few times I went to go run errands for her and she seemed to not be too sure how to socially interact as if people didn't come by too often. She also would always feed the cats that we had around the neighbourhood and seemed to become their caretaker. Recently, my family and I had received news that after a while of being in the hospital she had died, and with this came many other pieces of information. For one, she had apparently had several illnesses for a very long time but denied treatment for reasons that no one seemed to know. For two, she hadn't had anyone to talk to or interact with at all during her time living in this house. This isolation could actually have been what caused several of these health issues, and the fact that she denied treatment didn't help. She co...

When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes, I all alone beweep my outcast state, And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, And look upon myself and curse my fate, Wishing me like to one more rich in hope, Featured like him, like him with friends possessed, Desiring this man’s art and that man’s scope, With what I most enjoy contented least; Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising, Haply I think on thee, and then my state, (Like to the lark at break of day arising From sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven’s gate;        For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings        That then I scorn to change my state with kings.

In 2014, The National Institute of Health announced their results from several studies that they performed on the effects that isolation has on brain function. Through their studies, they found trends of several effects including In lonely adults, a significantly high mortality rate can be found. This rate is "double that of the mortality for obesity and quadruple the odds ratio for air pollution." Although this correlation was found, the reason for this correlation is unclear "Several studies also indicate that loneliness is a risk factor for cognitive decline" and it can affect the brain in almost every way over a period of time Over a long period of time, isolation can eventually lead to dementia   A: Anatomy of the isolated human brain. Sagittal view of the human brain. Main human brain areas shown to be associated with perceived social isolation (loneliness) are labeled. B: Effects of perceived social isolation on biology. Perceived social isolation ...

Because we are human, and humans strive for attention, recognition, and respect, our brains prefer it when we are supplied this from others and will make us feel happy when we can be seen getting this appreciation. However, the opposite effect can happen if we are not shown this appreciation and our brains will start to cause us to feel more depressed and not know what to do without approval from others. People need people to survive, it seems. The effects of people not being loved and appreciated from others can range from being mild to quite severe, depending on how much we rely on other people or depending on how long we are being separated from other people. With time, the effects of isolation can be much worse than it is at the start, and can even end up causing many mental issues. Love is a strange thing, and the effects of love can be even more strange, as we can become so obsessed with one person that the entire course of our life seems to gravitate around the...

Isolation is a very widespread issue that can be found many years ago, as well as today. This topic has also been portrayed in many famous books, and this allows more people to be made aware of the issue. A few of these examples include: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson  This book portrays the character Melinda Sordino, a freshman in high school who over the summer had been sexually assaulted by another student, but chose to stay quiet as she was worried that people wouldn't believe her. Eventually, she ends up telling one person who she believes she can trust, her best friend from middle school, Rachel Bruin, who had recently been asked to prom by the man who raped her. However, Rachel responds to Melinda by saying "You're a twisted little freak and you're jealous that I'm popular and I'm going to the prom and so you lie to me like this." (Anderson, 184) From this, it is evident that Rachel doesn't believe her and completely disregards the confid...