Alone in a crowd
With human populations bursting at the seams, we see people everywhere we go, but that doesn’t mean we get the social contact us pink chimpanzees need for good mental health. Right now, we’re living in a “social recession,” i.e. time spent with friends has contracted to less than three hours a week on average. For many of us, particularly seniors, that means zero. While chatting up the cashier at the grocery store does help, a dinner date goes a lot further to maintain brain health and prevent dementia. Fortunately, an added benefit to counseling is having a friend to visit an hour a week to help fill the gap while you figure out how to make new connections.—MR
Some weeks I only speak to the postman…
by Anita Chaudhuri, The Guardian US, February 2, 2023
The time we spend with our close friends has plummeted over the past decade. Here is an expert guide to making new connections and reviving old ones.
