About Loneliness

Loneliness is a feeling in which people experience a strong sense of emptiness and solitude. Loneliness is often compared to feeling empty, unwanted, and unimportant. Someone who is lonely may find it hard to form strong interpersonal relationships.


One of the first recorded uses of the word "lonely" was in William Shakespeare's Coriolanus, "Though I go alone, like a lonely dragon..." Act IV Scene 1

Loneliness is not the same as being alone. Many people have times when they are alone through circumstances or choice. Being alone can be experienced as positive, pleasurable, and emotionally refreshing if it is under the individual's control. Solitude is the state of being alone and secluded from other people, and often implies having made a conscious choice to be alone. Loneliness is unwanted solitude. Loneliness does not require being alone and is experienced even in crowded places. It can be described as the absence of identification, understanding or compassion. Loneliness can be described as a feeling of isolation from other individuals, regardless of whether one is physically isolated from others or not. It may also be described as a yearning for love or companionship, which is unfulfilled, but cannot seemingly be achieved, or may stem from the lack of love in one's life, and hence may lead to emotions such as rejection, despair and low self-esteem. Feelings of loneliness may be similar to feelings of the death or loss of a loved one.

In their growth as individuals, humans start a separation process at birth, which continues with growing independence towards adulthood. As such, feeling alone can be a healthy emotion and, indeed, choosing to be alone for a period of solitude can be enriching. To experience loneliness, however, can be to feel overwhelmed by an unbearable feeling of separateness at a profound level. This can manifest in feelings of abandonment, rejection, depression, insecurity, anxiety, hopelessness, unworthiness, meaninglessness, and resentment. If these feelings are prolonged they may become debilitating and prevent the affected individual from developing healthy relationships and lifestyles. If the individual is convinced he or she is unlovable, this will increase the experience of suffering and the likelihood of avoiding social contact. Low self-esteem will often trigger the social disconnection which can lead to loneliness.

In some people, temporary or prolonged loneliness can lead to notable artistic and creative expression, for example, as was the case with poet Emily Dickinson, and numerous musicians. This is not to imply that loneliness itself ensures this creativity; rather, it may have an influence on the subject matter of the artist. (Wikipedia)

Me gustaba mucho estar sola. No que no lo quisiera, por que sí, lo quería mucho, pero me gustaba estar así, nada de nada, de nadie. Leyendo, durmiendo, sonreindo, bebendo, estudiando, fumando o bailando como si nadie me viera.
A veces él se enojaba porque el hecho de estar sola me encantaba, otras veces le gustaba, porque cuando nos encontrábamos ya me extrañaba. Aunque estuviese sola "un rato no más"
No me sentía mal con la soledad. No me sentía mal en estar acompañada. Era muy raro, pero sólo me sentía mal cuando estaba mal.
La doctrina espiritualista me había ayudado muchísimo.
El perdonarme, perdonar a los demás olvidando todo lo malo de nuestras vidas.
Estaba bien... Veía un rayo verde, trabajaba para el gobierno, en la radio, en la casa... Estaba bien.