Immediate and extended family are a wonderful resource to lonely people. When people start writing letters to a grandparent or setting up a weekly phone call with a sibling, it can have a good impact on their overall mood.

Families are a resource

Introverts often see their social style as negative when they compare themselves to extroverts. Introverts don't need a large group of friends. Be true to yourself.
Also, find other personal interests. Taking continuing education classes or becoming a volunteer can put you in touch with like-minded people.

Embrace who you are

The elderly are lonely. Teens are lonely. People in cities and rural areas are lonely to such an extent that it is considered a public health issue.
One report found that nearly half of respondents said they sometimes or always felt alone. But there are steps you can take when you're feeling especially lonely.

The epidemic of loneliness

<ul><li>If you find it challenging to move beyond small-talk, you can ask a more personal question like, "What's one thing that I don't know about you?" or "If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?"</li><li>Use info from social media as a conversation starter the next time you get together.</li><li>Spend time with a pet. It can help combat feelings of loneliness.</li></ul>

How to cope with loneliness

Work on connecting in meaningful ways with other people and connecting with the lonely part inside of you. <ul><li>The outside world. If you like sports, join a local sports team. If you like writing, join a writing group.</li><li>Internal work. Get curious about the meaning of loneliness for you. Try to understand why you feel lonely.</li></ul>

Work on yourself

Friends are not found - they are made over time. Making friends is an incremental process; It takes between 6 - 8 conversations before someone considers us a friend.
Proximity and repetition are key. Put yourself in situations where you will see the same faces again and again.

Friends are made

Many people desire any company because they don't like the discomfort when they are alone.
Learn to enjoy your own company. Start by reading, watching TED Talks that will make you think, or start a gratitude journal.

Get comfortable

Talk to people you encounter throughout your day. When you enter a coffee shop, make a simple comment about the weather to make impersonal interactions a bit more friendly.
If you practice this small talk in a variety of situations, it's easier to start a conversation with people you want to get to know better.

Practice small talk

We live in lonely times. The elderly are lonely. The teens are lonely. People are lonely in cities and in rural areas, so much so that it's now considered a public-health issue (one with real, physical health effects).

Practice small talk

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