Season 2 Episode 1 - We Are Lonely: An Introduction

Why are we lonely? Holly found herself in a habit of being alone after experiencing years of illness; Tim moved into a studio apartment in Melbourne just as the second lockdown hit; Charity is working through generations of disconnection forced on her family through Stolen Generations; and Aleks finds the pressure of managing a multi-faceted career and study life can overtake his downtime and peace. We join our participants as they each meet their mentor and start to understand why they’re feeling lonely.   It seems as quickly as we’re filling this planet we’re each becoming more isolated. One in three people in Australia are experiencing high levels of loneliness; the UK has a Minister of Loneliness; and the US Surgeon General has declared loneliness a health epidemic. This matters, because while loneliness is a normal human emotion, if we allow that feeling to become chronic, it has serious health consequences. It can be worse for us than obesity or casual smoking.   Host: Jemma Sbeg Participants: Holly, Tim, Charity and Aleks Mentors: Dr Deidre Anderson, Barry Conrad, Sean Szeps and Tessa Blencowe Experts: Professor Ian Hickie and Dr Lisa Mundy  

Om Podcasten

Join us as we tackle the growing issue of loneliness, and our deeply human need to belong alongside huge topics like mental health, autism and discrimination. We’re seeing the issue of loneliness grow all around the world, and while we may think of loneliness as something that mainly impacts older generations, research shows that 18-34 year olds are most likely to be affected. And yes it’s sometimes to do with phones and social media, but there’s more to it than that. It’s about how we interact with the world around us. So we’ve found nine very different young adults who are searching for connection in their lives. We’ve paired them each with a mentor who’ll give them insights and strategies to combat loneliness and navigate their way beyond. From ADHD and times of transition; to migration and childhood grief; each participant will explore an area of their lives that is causing them to feel lonely. Our mentors include Ru Paul superstar, Kween Kong; Counsellor and Artist Tessa Blenclowe; Academic and Fire Dragon Feminist Dr Quah Ee Ling; and Psychologist and Podcaster James Van Cuylenburg. Our host is Human Connection Scientist, Dr Ali Walker and we also speak with World Health Organisation and University of Sydney Researcher Dr Daniel Surkalim. We Are Lonely is funded as part of Medibank’s ten year initiative to combat loneliness.