science

Loneliness is a slippery concept. It’s not the same as social isolation, which occurs when someone has few meaningful social relationships, although “they’re two sides of the same coin”, says old-age psychiatrist Andrew Sommerlad at University College London. Rather, loneliness is a person’s subjective experience of being unsatisfied with their social relationships.

That's an important distinction. I also wonder how much of 'loneliness ' is influenced by decreasing agency in your life. I'm fairly comfortable with very limited social interactions in part because I'm healthy and mobile. Just going to the store and interacting with other customers and cashiers is enough for me to feel like I'm part of a functioning community.

But I do wonder what will happen if\when I become less mobile due to age or injury. If I can't go out myself I don't think interacting with a delivery person would give me the same satisfaction because I would start to feel like I wasn't as much a part of a community.

For me the problem is I really value my peace and solitude and I strongly agree with Robin Williams quote "I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone." The social obligations and compromises people accept just to avoid potentially feeling lonely just aren't worth it to me. So I'll probably suffer loneliness when my health starts failing, but somehow I'm willing to accept that fate to keep the peace I have now.