Volunteering Help Combat Loneliness

Did you know that most of the the world population is struggling with loneliness and isolation and are looking for ways to combat it?

Did you know that most of the the world population is struggling with loneliness and isolation and are looking for ways to combat it?

however, considering how  loneliness has become in most of our culture, does that mean we should just continue?  as a matter of fact, some medical journal say that loneliness is almost same with smoking and obesity because thy increases the risk of heart disease, blood pressure and stress on the body.

This is  where volunteering comes in to help. By surrounding oneself  with people who share your passion and enthusiasm for a cause, you then allowed yourself the opportunity to build on some of those lasting connections.

Below are the different ways volunteering helps you combat loneliness.

1. Medically speaking volunteering is good for your health

It have been significantly proven that volunteering is some form of a mood-booster. For many  years now, we’ve been aware of the psychological and physiological effects that helping others has on the body. Charitable acts spark a release of dopamine commonly known as the ‘helper’s high’.

When loneliness inflicts chronic stress on the body, volunteering actively reduces it effectively . Many people who go out of their way to do good things  experience a considerably less stress and less stress-related illnesses as a result.

Volunteering presents the an occasion for you to throw yourself into a cause you care  about so deeply, meeting like-minded people and together seeing the tangible results of your actions in shaping the world for the better.

2. With active Volunteering, loneliness at all ages can combat 

It would be naïve to think that loneliness only affects an aged population. More than one in two Gen Z and Millennials report frequent loneliness, making them the loneliest generation. The reason is that they do not usually have hobbies or interests that provide opportunities to meet new people. This is where volunteering fills a much-needed space.

There is no age restrictions when considering volunteering, and it can do wonders for teens looking to build better social skills. Volunteering can help boost your confidence and open up new friendship circles in environments outside of school or college.

For others later in life, volunteering can serve as a great catalyst for connection for when you’re in a new environment and looking for a community, or if you simply want more intimate local friendships.

3. Volunteering can provide more social opportunities in retirement age

As many hard-working befriending charities confirm, social isolation amongst the elderly still remains widespread. 3.3 million people aged over 65 in the UK live alone. That’s why having a sense of community is so important, and volunteering can offer that for many people long into their retirement years.

Volunteering is an opportunity to stimulate both your body and your mind, and it’s been shown to ward off degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and functional decline, both of which are listed under long-term effects of loneliness.

What’s more, volunteering presents the occasion for more inter-generational friendships and gives people a new-found sense of purpose when they’re suddenly faced with limited opportunities to be social. Above all, it creates new social networks for those who wouldn’t otherwise be