Loneliness is on the rise in Aotearoa and around the world. Human beings are social creatures who crave connection, and when that need is not met, loneliness can be deeply painful. Loneliness not only makes us sad; scientists now know it also threatens our physical health in unexpected ways.
What is also surprising is just how many people are affected by loneliness. Research in England found 80 percent of primary school-aged children felt lonely at least some of the time. In the US, 36 percent of adults reported feeling lonely frequently, almost all the time, or all the time. And in Europe, loneliness is estimated to affect roughly 22 to 26 percent of people.
In New Zealand, we don’t fare much better. A 2018 wellbeing survey found that nearly a quarter
