Many people feel that if they're lonely, that means that they're not likable or that they're broken in some way.
Interpretation
Loneliness can lead to feelings of unlikability and brokenness.
In this quote, Vivek Murthy highlights a common misconception where individuals associate their loneliness with a lack of likability or a perceived defect in their character. This flawed reasoning can exacerbate feelings of isolation instead of recognizing that loneliness is a universal human experience that does not inherently diminish one's worth or value.
In practice
This quote can be used in a mental health seminar to discuss the misconceptions related to loneliness.
I think sometimes in the focus on deep friendships and on romantic relationships, we can lose sight of how important the small connections we make are with strangers and with people that we may encounter for just a few seconds or a few minutes, whether it's the barista at our coffee shop or the stranger next to us on the subway.
Without strong communities, we cannot pull together during times of hardship. Our diversity turns from a source of strength to a source of conflict.
One of the things that happens in our regular lives is that when we're in moments of pain or feeling alone, we may hesitate to reach out to others because we may think - they're not going through the same experiences I am.
There's a tremendous sense of shame that people who are lonely feel. I say that as someone who felt ashamed of being lonely as a child and even at points during adulthood.
Our health care workers are the heroes of the Covid-19 response.
What you quickly realize once you commit to getting more sleep is it can increase your productivity, it can improve your mood. And that doesn't just help you at work, but it helps you be the kind of person you want to be with your family and your friends and that's ultimately what matters most.
It's always the case that the minority has to navigate two different worlds. Women have to know how to live in a man's world. Gay people have to know how to live in a straight world. Black people gotta know how to live in a predominantly white world.
Compassion is the ability to understand how difficult it is for people to be the best of what they want to be at all times.
I have a hole where my heart should be, she thought, and nowhere else to go.
When I was in high school I got involved in the fringe theater scene in Chicago, and I met some openly gay people. I could see that it got better, that they were happy and loved and supported. I saw with my own eyes that it got better.
What they say about TV shows is true. You're really a family. You laugh, you fight, you get close, you know? Movies are shorter. They're over quicker. You don't form the same bonds.
There is not one in a hundred of either sex who is not taken in when they marry.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.