Combating Loneliness

It’s normal to feel lonely during these turbulent times—but sometimes it can be frightening, too. Fortunately, there are resources available to help you feel better about isolating. Transcendental Meditation can be a big help because it reconnects you to your steady, calm, inner self. But there are other tips that can make a big difference—as you will hear from Bob in his timely message for all of us.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Stay Calm is a production of I Heart Radio. Welcome
to Stay Calm, your daily dose of calmness. I'm Bob Roth,
and I've been teaching people to meditate for fifty years,
helping them to stay calm under pressure, reboot and re
energize their lives, and basically be a happier, healthier version

(00:22):
of themselves. And now I want to help you do
the same. Ready, sit comfortably, take a few deep breaths,
and let's begin today's journey. Feeling lonely, You're not alone.
These can be very tough times. So many of us
love connecting with people. We thrive on human connection. Before

(00:46):
the coronavirus pandemic, we go out, go to restaurants, stores,
or favorite corner coffee shop, our favorite bakery. We'd see
people we love, people who love us. Gave us a
power of connection. The longing meaning now not so much.
Mother Teresa once said that people feel more pain from

(01:08):
loneliness than they do from hunger. Actually, we're in the
midst of a major loneliness epidemic. Before coronavirus. A study
in eighteen by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that sixty
million Americans said that they are often are always lonely
or felt socially isolated, and of people older than the

(01:29):
age of sixty felt lonely. We don't like to be alone.
We're social creatures, so what can we do well? Many
sociologists say the problem is we put too much value
on individualism, too much value on material success for our
self worth, that we undervalue relationships. They say we need

(01:50):
to reprioritize and put people at the top of everything,
and the way we run our businesses, educate our young.
He'll are sick. That's fortunately, there's stuff we can do
right now. According to the former U s Surgeon General
Viveck Morty, it's all about connection. He says, quote, building

(02:11):
a more connected life is ultimately grounded in the small
things we do. It doesn't require a wholesale and version
of our life. There are small steps we can take
so we find much deeper connection and fulfillment. One of
the greatest gifts we can give to ourselves is to
give to other people, and that is the gift of
our full attention. We're used to thinking that the way

(02:34):
to deal with the problem is to voice and enact
a solution, but there's also great healing to be found
in just listening deeply to someone and it's one of
the most powerful things we can ever do. Another thing
we can do, he says, is calling a friend to
see how they're doing, checking on a neighbor who might
be older to make sure that they have groceries, face

(02:56):
timing with your grandchildren for ten or fifteen minutes so
that their parents have time to sit and breathe. But
we also know there are times when we are alone
that we don't feel lost and lonely, but instead we
feel inspired, energized, empowered. The deepest connection is to connect
with yourself during meditation. No one can take that away

(03:18):
from you. It's safe, peaceful, sublime, restorative, loyal, and it's
deep within you at all times. You just need to
take the time to make the connection. My health tip
of the day, whether or not you feel lonely, you
may know someone who does. Call them. That's it today.

(03:40):
Now call or zoom a family member or friend, someone
you're thinking about, someone you may be a little concerned about,
or maybe just someone who makes you happy. You can
make a difference and you'll feel a whole lot better.
And regarding making a difference, I want to end with
this story as told by Lauren Easley, who was an

(04:01):
American anthropologist, educator, philosopher, and natural science writer. I love
this story, Easley wrote. One day a man was walking
along the beach when he noticed a boy picking something
up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the boy,
he asked, what are you doing. The youth replied, throwing

(04:22):
starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and
the tide is going out. If I don't throw them back,
they'll die. Son, The man said, don't you realize that
there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish.
You can't make a difference. After listening politely, the boy
bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it back

(04:45):
into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said,
I made a difference for that one. All right. Thank
you for joining me today. I hope you heard something
that inspires that uplifts you and that you can incorporate

(05:05):
into your own life. This is Bob Roth. Stay calm, hey,
all of you out there, I'd love to hear from you.
You can send me your stories, your questions, or anything
else on your mind. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,
or Instagram at meditation Bob. You can also send me

(05:27):
an email at meditation Bob Roth at gmail dot com.
I look forward to hearing from you.