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Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#51

Post by clownworldclown »

naikrovek wrote: post #16
zoklet-enjoyer wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not a good world view. I imagine you've been through a lot to get to the point where you feel like that. Have you tried finding a friend group that has a mutual hobby to bond over?

it is an accurate world view, in my experience. friends and partners are in no way worth it. I lose every time and the pain is too much. how everyone does it is unknown to me. life isn't just hell, it's torture. noting gained and constant emotional pain.

they do it through a lot of medication and anesthetics and sedatives that get them through the day

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#52

Post by implements »

naikrovek wrote: post #16
zoklet-enjoyer wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not a good world view. I imagine you've been through a lot to get to the point where you feel like that. Have you tried finding a friend group that has a mutual hobby to bond over?

it is an accurate world view, in my experience. friends and partners are in no way worth it. I lose every time and the pain is too much. how everyone does it is unknown to me. life isn't just hell, it's torture. noting gained and constant emotional pain.

It sounds, and I say this in genuine concern, that you may benefit from getting professional help with your mood and perceptions.

[Depression lies to you] “Depression is a chemical imbalance in the brain that can have a resounding impact on how we view the world and how we think the world views us.”

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#53

Post by varelse »

asdff wrote: post #40
nibbleshifter wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Just go on a hike, walking is free. If the webshits on here could work out a way to monetize hiking, they will.

It won't be long until some drone based sky billboard company emerges from the ether, strongarms/bribes local government into allowing its exclusive use, and then you are tracked as you walk your hiking trail by a herd of advertising drones that cost just a dime less than the hypothetical number they generate from your annoyed, halfway focused attention. It's coming. I hope some good people here on HN are working on…

No post body was provided.

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#54

Post by guicho271828 »

What I (non-US) observed:

non-U.S. people when talking about their own medical issues: I have this medical issue, I wonder if I should see a doctor, the cause may be this.

U.S. people when talking about their own medical issues: I had this medical issue, I saw a doctor, and the cause was this.

non-U.S. people when talking about their own divorce: I am thinking about divorcing my wife/husband.

U.S. people when talking about their own divorce: We divorced last week.

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#55

Post by daemoens »

mym1990 wrote: post #6

There is absolutely no problem with spending time alone, I believe more people should move towards a place where being alone isn't anxiety inducing(easier said than done). Taking a walk alone(no headphones, just your thoughts), spending a couple hours reading a book, going to a restaurant and having a meal by yourself, working on a passion project...these things can be really liberating! Instead our collective alone…

The issue is that people are not willingly alone, not that they aren't comfortable being alone.

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#56

Post by [deleted] »

altacc wrote: post #19

There's been a lot of talk recently about effects of loneliness and the "loneliness epidemic". What a lot of this lacks, including this article, is a good and correct definition of loneliness. They seem to use the lazy & inaccurate definition of "spending significant time alone", which is very different to being lonely. There's a lot of people who are now able to spend more time alone than before and are happy with t…

[deleted]

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#57

Post by Zababa »

altacc wrote: post #19

There's been a lot of talk recently about effects of loneliness and the "loneliness epidemic". What a lot of this lacks, including this article, is a good and correct definition of loneliness. They seem to use the lazy & inaccurate definition of "spending significant time alone", which is very different to being lonely. There's a lot of people who are now able to spend more time alone than before and are happy with t…

It is a better definition, but it's still not complete. For example, if I'm talking to Fred about a movie we both saw, and Fred found it really funny and I found it really tragic, and I can't manage to get my point accross, I will feel lonely. That means that for me, increasing the amount of social interactions can make the problem worse, as that will reinforce that idea in my head that I can't be understood by other people.

Re: Americans are choosing to be alone, but we should reverse that

#60

Post by trophycase »

mensetmanusman wrote: post #46

People can’t compete with the infinite entertainment quality of the phone. These trends aren’t surprising.

This and internet addiction are definitely more responsible than people are letting on. Also the unwillingness a lot of people have to commit and/or start families. And especially the negative marketing done towards women with respect to having children.
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