www.Ups tatePhys i c i ansSC . com | www.Hea l thL i nksUps tate. com | 23 The meaning of loneliness is more about the perceived connectedness to others than it is about being around others. Those who feel isolated or unhappy with their social relationships are not experiencing feelings of connection. People may have many opportunities for connection – a full room, the capabilities of the internet to reach out to anyone at any time – and still struggle to feel connected and less alone. Emotional loneliness – not merely being alone but rather feeling alone, abandoned or anxious – was associated with mortality in a study published in Psychosomatic Medicine, Journal of Biobehavioral Medicine. Specifically, each standard deviation from the UCLA Loneliness Scale sample average was associated with an 18.6% increase in risk for all causes of mortality. Social loneliness was not associated with mortality. The study considered this emotional feeling of loneliness, regardless of social context, to be “the toxic component of loneliness.” Rasmussen described her own observations of physical impacts on patient physical health such as low energy, pain
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