Coping With Loneliness, Managing Your Mental Health
- Pop singer Lady Gaga, 37, is a mental health advocate, but this comes after she had to work through her own mental health struggles, which included loneliness, anxiety, and depression.
- Research published in the journal “Cancer” studied loneliness and cancer’s impact. It found that adults living alone may be at higher risk of dying from cancer. The study’s results found that adults living alone had a “1.32 times higher risk of cancer mortality than adults living with others.” “1 in 3” say they experience loneliness at least once a week over the past year, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
- A person can still experience loneliness even if surrounded by other people often. “Loneliness theory suggests that loneliness is not merely a result of one’s actual isolation or number of social network members, but instead relates to perceived isolation and dissatisfaction with the quality of relationships,” “researchers studying the relationship between loneliness and cancer patients said in the medical journal Quality of Life Research.
- Our mental health affects how we think, feel, and behave. Certain triggers like stress, traumatic events, or changes in your physical health can affect your mental health.
- Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman suggests people working on their mental health to practice positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on encouraging positivity among patients and finding what brings a sense of vitality to their lives.
- Cancer patients experiencing loneliness are encouraged to join a self-help or support group (virtual or in-person) and talk to trusted loved ones or a mental health professional.
Amid pop singer Lady Gaga’s immense success, she’s also openly struggled with bouts of loneliness and depression during her career. In most cases, she managed to cope through her music. Similarly, for cancer patients experiencing loneliness, you, too, have options to offset the feeling of loneliness and the onset of depression.
Her experience mirrors that of millions of Americans as “1 in 3” say they too experienced loneliness at least once a week over the past year, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
As she coped with the stress of being a young music star, she also worked to keep her mental health in check. Although she openly preaches mental wellness today, her journey experienced challenges. She struggled with depression and anxiety – something millions of Americans can easily relate to.
“I curated my life to be an expression of my pain. This is how I overcame my depression: by creating somebody that I felt was stronger than me. But…nothing was able to fix how I was genetically made. I was born this way. No matter how much success you have, no matter how many opportunities, fame, fortune—no matter how many people accept you, to your face, the person that really needs to accept you is you,” she said before an audience at Yale University in 2015.
Gaga admitted she took medication for anxiety and depression. The emotional toll the mental disorders took on her even caused her to consider quitting her music career. However, she started realizing the root causes of her downed feelings rested in putting others’ demands before her own.
In addition to taking more control of her life and cutting out things that contributed to her anxiety, she also turned to therapy, made music, and started acting to help her cope.
Expert Resources for Managing Your Mental Health
Loneliness and Cancer
“More than half of cancer patients and survivors experience an aspect of social isolation at least some of the time, and 31 percent report feeling lonely very or somewhat often,” the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network said last October in a report that surveyed cancer patients.
Research published in the journal “Cancer” studied loneliness and cancer’s impact. It found that adults living alone may be at higher risk of dying from cancer.
The study examined data involving 473,000 people between 18 and 64 years old from 1998 to 2019. The study’s results found that adults living alone had a “1.32 times higher risk of cancer mortality than adults living with others.”
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) says that “more than one-third of adults aged 45 and older feel lonely, and nearly one-fourth of adults aged 65 and older are considered socially isolated.”
Additional health risks for people experiencing prolonged loneliness may also include dementia, heart disease, stroke, depression, anxiety, and suicide, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says.
It should also be noted that a person can still experience loneliness even if surrounded by others often.
“Loneliness theory suggests that loneliness is not merely a result of one’s actual isolation or number of social network members, but instead relates to perceived isolation and dissatisfaction with the quality of relationships,” researchers studying the relationship between loneliness and cancer patients said in the medical journal Quality of Life Research.
MacMillan Cancer Support, a cancer advocacy resource, suggests helpful tips for cancer patients experiencing loneliness.
- Join a self-help or support group (virtual or in-person)
- Talk to a mental health professional
- Talk to family or friends
- Tell loved ones you trust about your diagnosis and what you’re experiencing daily. Although sharing intimate details about your diagnosis may not come easy, inviting people you love along for your journey helps build added support.
Managing Your Mental Health
Our mental health affects how we think, feel, and behave. Certain triggers like stress, traumatic events, or changes in your physical health can affect your mental health.
Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman suggests people working on their mental health to practice positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on encouraging positivity among patients and finding what brings a sense of vitality to their lives.
WATCH: Managing your mental health amid a health challenge.
Dr. Boardman also suggests asking yourself questions about how you deal with stressful situations to see if they’re working or need adjusting.
“Are your coping strategies in the way that you’re using them now? Are they as effective as they were in the past? Take a look at your beliefs. Do you have any fixed beliefs that are counterproductive and impeding you from taking positive steps?” Dr. Boardman said.
To keep your mental health in check, it’s important to be aware of subtle signs indicating something is affecting your mind. These signs include:
- A change in eating or sleeping habits
- Losing interest in people or usual activities
- Experiencing little or no energy
- Numb and/or hopeless feelings
- Turning to drink or drugs more than usual
- Non-typical angry, upset, or on-edge feelings
- Yelling/fighting with loved ones
- Experiencing mood swings
- Intrusive thoughts
- Trouble getting through daily tasks
If you find yourself struggling in any of these areas, talk to your doctor or a mental health professional to begin your emotional journey alongside your other cancer treatment.
“Depression and stress make it harder to treat cancer [and] make it harder to tolerate the treatments,” Dr. Scott Irwin, director of supportive care services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, previously told SurvivorNet.
“There’s data that if you have extra stress or depression that you may not recover or you have a higher risk of recurrence, so in treating the depression, we’re actually impacting the cancer care outcomes,” Dr. Irwin added.
Questions to Ask Your Doctor
If you find yourself struggling with a diagnosis or helping a loved one cope with their emotions, consider asking your doctor the following questions:
- How can I go about improving my outlook/mental health?
- Are there any activities I can do to encourage positive feelings?
- When should I seek other interventions if I’m still struggling?
- How can seeking these connections help me in my day-to-day life?
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
