Loneliness, Like Chronic Stress, Taxes The Immune System...by Dr. Caroline Leaf

 When the media flash headlines similar to the title of this blog, it often gives the impression that the research it is citing is something new and extraordinary. The truth, however, is...

 that science is catching up with the Word of God. The scriptures are very clear that we are not meant to be alone, that we were created for relationship, first and foremost with God and then with each other: Genesis 2:18 “It is not good that man should be alone,” and 1 Corinthians 12 -20.
Poor quality relationships, which make you feel lonely, are definitively linked to a number of health problems. More specifically, research links loneliness to a number of dysfunctional immune responses and increased blood pressure. Researchers saw that people who were lonelier produced more inflammation-related proteins in response to stress than did people that were more socially connected. This means they reacted more strongly to stressful situations than those people that did not consider themselves to be lonely. Chronic inflammation is linked to numerous conditions including coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease as well as the frailty and decline that can come with aging.
Feeling lonely, as distinct from being alone, not only affects our health, but also affects sleep, with more disruptions in the night. It affects the brain – fmri scans show a difference in people’s brains who feel lonely and isolated to those who don’t feel alone. Behavior is different as well. Loneliness has even been shown to spread like a virus amongst people!
At the heart of quantum physics is the law of entanglement, which shows that every thing is linked and that there is no space/time dimension when it comes to matter and to life. Your thoughts affect yourself, the people in the current generation and the next four generations. Our brain structures and brain circuitry are specifically geared to relating with each other, feeling empathy, sharing. In fact, interconnections and interrelatedness are fundamental laws of brain function. You are designed to be honest, open and connected to God. He wants you to be vulnerable to Him so he can fill you and build you up!
But God also wants you to reach out and connect to others, deeply and genuinely. This doesn’t mean you open your heart to everyone, but you do need to have a few people you truly share your heart with. We are all aware that there are different levels of relationships; however, the point of a good relationship, whichever level, is to be honest and genuine. Align yourself with God’s way and not the world’s shallow and needy way.
Reach out, make friends, smile, laugh and give 100% in your unique way because you have something to offer that no one else can offer. When you give 100%, you divert loneliness in yourself and others, and there is an added bonus: your health, peace and happiness will improve!