How Social Isolation Is Killing Us

Post by brilliantcode » Fri, Dec 23, 2016, 5:13 PM UTC

finid wrote: post #26

brilliantcode wrote: post #19

Social isolation is a huge problem. There's stigma around declaring it. I'm doing my part to address this problem right now: Any HN'ers in downtown Vancouver reading this post, let's grab coffee near Robson Square. My email is in my profile and synced to my phone so I will reply promptly. I've been just reading principles.com (from the other HN thread) and inspired to take action.

To some extent, Meetups help. It's not just an opportunity to hear about the latest in a filed that you have an interest in, but also an avenue to meet-and-greet.

Post by tnecniv » Fri, Dec 23, 2016, 5:24 PM UTC

scottmf wrote: post #152

tnecniv wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I must be going to the wrong bars. Everyone I go regularly has people minding their own business.

Where do you live? In NYC I feel much more welcome talking to strangers in bars than I do in London.

Post by stephancoral » Fri, Dec 23, 2016, 5:33 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #87

bvinc wrote: post #43

I think it's valuable to think about this problem from an evolutionary perspective. Almost every problem we have can be viewed this way. We should be asking ourselves how we were living 100,000 years ago. This is what our bodies and our brains are expecting. The whole concept of the nuclear family and a house and a fence is a completely foreign concept to our bodies because we haven't been doing it for very many gene…

If that's the way we "should" be living, why then as a society did we mostly chose to live separately in family units? It must have a survival advantage or we would have stopped doing it.

Post by navait » Fri, Dec 23, 2016, 5:46 PM UTC

gooseus wrote: post #196

tdfx wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just like anything else, people want social interactions that are stimulating and rewarding. Being around other people for the sake of being around other warm bodies is typically not very interesting for most people. Who has no shortage of friends? People with obvious value propositions. Rich or influential people. Well connected people. Good looking people. People who already have a lot of friends. It's strange to t…

I find that simply making people feel comfortable being themselves around you is the easiest way to make friends. I am not attractive, influential, connected or rich, but I also don't expect anything from people... as in I'm not trying to gain anything from them, not that that I have low expectations of people. I find that people appreciate social interactions where they feel comfortable being themselves and don't fe…

Post by xj9 » Fri, Dec 23, 2016, 5:57 PM UTC

smcmurtry wrote: post #21

closeparen wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is an extremely poor argument. Try starting a conversation on a Manhattan subway. The lack of boxes between you and your fellow commuters does not make it remotely acceptable to interact with them, nor should it. It is much harder to meet friends who are separated by 5 miles of bus ride than 5 miles of freeway. It is much harder to actually hear each other at a crowded bar than someone's home, but only the very…

Many people who live in small apartments can and do host social gatherings. In my experience, how frequently someone hosts gatherings has more to do with their personality than the size of their living space.