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Isolation

 ISOLATION

What are we talking about?
Isolation is measured by the number of contacts that individuals have with others and by the quality reach contact.  It is possible to have contacts with many people but those contacts to be superficial and unrewarding.  It is important also to think how we might measure not only the contacts but also the consequences of a decrease in contacts.
One of these is the feeling of loneliness but some people feel lonely in the middle of a crowded room.  Nevertheless there is no doubt that increasing isolation increases the feelings of loneliness, but some people feel lonely in the middle of a crowded room. Nevertheless there is no doubt that increasing isolation increases the feelings of loneliness and loneliness increases the risk of significant depression.
It is also important to emphasise that a decrease in the number of challenging and social interactions increases the risk of dementia because it decreases what is called the cognitive and emotional fitness of the brain and mind.
 
What are the effects of ageing?
Ageing by itself is not a cause of isolation but certain things that occur as we live longer, most of them related to the ageing process as we have emphasised before do increase the risk of isolation. These include
  • mobility problems
  • difficulty with driving and the loss of driving licence
  • visual problems
  • hearing problems
 
How can you minimise the effects of ageing and living longer?
Perhaps the most important thing is to be aware of the dangers of isolation. Young people subjected to brainwashing can develop hallucinations and delusions simply being isolated in a room and this has been used for many years to bring about a breakdown in morale and mood. Many people who have lived longer become housebound principally because of mobility problems complicated by visual and hearing problems and this increases their risk of depression and dementia.  
Therefore it is vitally important to anticipate and take steps to 
  • prevent loss of hearing
  • visual failure and blindness
  • mobility problems

It is also important to recognise that isolation can cause depression and the person might not wish or express a wish to go out and meet others again.
 
What can you do to reduce the risk associated with isolation?
Perhaps the most important thing is simply to overcome isolation by increasing face to face contact.  However people with severe mobility problems may not be able to get out more than once a week and of course winter complicates things even further. 
What is needed therefore is to think of ways in which they can have more visitors at home and the green gym movement is an example of young people visiting older people, learning from them and helping them with their garden as part of a training programme.
Although it is no substitute for face to face human contact the internet now offers wonderful opportunities for reducing isolation.  Obviously, anyone connecting to the internet can communicate easily with other people but more important developments that have taken place recently have been the introduction of voice recognition, for example the Amazon Echo Dot and Echo Show which overcomes the problems that some people have with typing.  Finally virtual reality now offers the opportunity for working in groups.  For example there is a plan to have different “retirement housing” units competing with one another in cycling or walking with a competition being to see which unit can raise most money for Cancer Research, Alzheimer’s Research or Refugee Children.  The use of virtual reality is immersive technology as it is called is one means of combating isolation and the very word immersive, the adjective from the noun immersion implies the opposite of isolation
 
How can you maintain and increase emotional and cognitive fitness?
The most important thing is to increase the number of meaningful social engagements.  Perhaps the most important are those in which the person who is isolated is helping other people and many more people could be involved in the type of research projects that need human beings to be gathering data as in the research programme called Zooniverse.
 
Who can help?
Perhaps the most important person to help is a grandchild or young person who can ensure that the person is using the internet Echo Show and virtual reality immersive technology optimally.  Teenage boys who have mastered fortnight are the best educators.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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