On My Mind: Loneliness is one of the pandemic’s most harmful symptoms

At the beginning of the school year in Fall 2019, most people would probably say I was doing really well. I had a great internship in the industry I wanted to work in. I held a leadership position at the Daily Trojan, and I even had started writing the “On My Mind” column. I had gotten fairly good grades in all my classes up to that point and fall semester was looking like it would go the same way. 

On the inside, though, I was at my worst. I had so little motivation that it took hours for me to get out of bed, and I barely made it to my classes. I spent all my energy keeping up the façade of a happy, well-adjusted Karan for everyone else to see, so there was none left by the time I got home. I was so miserable that the constant barrage of thoughts in my head that told me I was a failure, that I was a burden and that I was worthless felt more true with each passing moment. 

I had felt depressed before, but never like this. At the same time, identifying the culprit wasn’t hard — to put it simply, I was lonely. I was living alone for the first time, something I should’ve known was a bad idea, given my history of mental illness. My depression made me push away the people closest to me — I fought with my best friend and kept my mom in the dark about how I was feeling. 

My loneliness was so powerful that I found myself checking into a psychiatric hospital and ended up taking a full-year leave of absence from USC to work on my mental health. But I’m back now! I learned so much about myself, mental health and what wellness really looks like. I’m excited to share all of that with you in this column throughout the semester. 

Now, I have a strong social support system and a team of mental health professionals I can turn to in times of crisis. That being said, the loneliness hasn’t gone away — it’s probably gotten worse. I haven’t seen most of my friends in person for almost a full year now, both because of my leave of absence in 2019 and because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

I’m not the only one experiencing loneliness. Even before the pandemic hit, a January report from health insurance provider Cigna said that over 60% of Americans feel some degree of loneliness. Looking at young adults between the ages of 18 to 22 specifically, that number goes up to 79%. It might seem like loneliness isn’t a big deal, but it’s an epidemic that rivals the effects of the coronavirus.   

According to a meta-analysis conducted by researchers at Brigham Young University, the health risks of loneliness are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness is linked to a wide array of chronic health issues, from expected problems like depression and anxiety to more serious conditions, including dementia and heart problems. 

Loneliness during this pandemic is particularly harmful to college students. College is an inherently social experience. Classes are just one part of a broad university culture that’s defined by a thriving social life: Attending parties, joining clubs and student organizations and making friends that’ll stay with you for life are all integral to student life — and we’re missing out. 

It might seem like social media is the answer to the problem of loneliness. It’s an easy way to connect with friends, communicate instantly and see what the world is up to — but research from the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology reveals that social media might actually be one of the things contributing to people’s loneliness. 

The study asked one group of college students to limit their social media use to 10 minutes per platform each day and told the other group to use their social media as usual. The group that used social media less reported significantly lower levels of depression and loneliness. While it looks like an easy way to connect with friends, social media often only makes us feel left out (or, given the current coronavirus mandates, makes us miss people we haven’t seen in months because of the pandemic). 

However, there is hope — being alone or isolated doesn’t necessarily translate to loneliness. Loneliness is a feeling, not a fact. It takes work, but nurturing existing relationships can make you feel as connected to each other as ever. 

Stay in touch with your friends in different ways. It might feel normal to only contact that one friend by text or always FaceTime that other friend on the weekends. This works when online communication happens in conjunction with in-person meetings. When you can’t engage with your peers face-to-face anymore, doing the same thing over and over gets boring. 

But it’s easy to get creative. Send a snail mail letter to a friend, meet up with them over Zoom the next day and text them that afternoon. Find fun ways to keep in touch — I’ve started sending my friends quirky questions, like what kind of restaurant they would open if they could. I end up learning more about my friends while also connecting with them on a personal level. 

Make the most of online Zoom meetings. Pre-pandemic, a party could just be people standing around while music plays and drinks are served. Now, over Zoom, that would probably be boring and ineffective — but there are many creative ways to use Zoom to throw epic hangouts. You can plan a scavenger hunt, giving riddles and clues that lead to household items you know your friends have. You can host a Netflix Party drinking game, rejoicing over a favorite film by taking shots at its most iconic moments. A few weeks ago, I hosted a murder mystery party over Zoom, giving each of my friends a motive to kill the victim and leaving clues about who the murderer could be throughout the game (it was a spectacular experience). 

Loneliness is on the rise, and college students are one of the most at-risk demographics. It’s essential to stay connected with social support systems in creative ways and reach out for help when it’s needed. It’s never wrong to tell someone you’re not doing okay, and there will always be people available to support you. 

Help is available for anyone who needs it. Students dealing with mental health concerns can contact the 24/7 phone line (213) 740-9355 for professional assistance from USC Mental Health Services. If you are concerned about a fellow Trojan, you can notify Trojans Care 4 Trojans by calling (213) 821-4710. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, you can reach The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. 

Karan Nevatia is a junior writing about mental health and wellness. His column, “On My Mind,” runs every other Thursday.