Welcome to the Uniting Communities Overcoming Loneliness monthly e-news. We’ll keep you up to date with the latest news about loneliness initiatives, research, innovative case studies and data.
Overcoming Loneliness replaces the former Teams platform and Not Alone newsletters.
If you have a story to share about how your work or organisation is overcoming loneliness, please contact us at advocacy@unitingcommunities.org
South Australia
A Snapshot of Loneliness in SA
How many people are experiencing loneliness, who are the most effected, and how do we overcome loneliness?
Find out the answer to these questions in Uniting Communities new Loneliness Snapshot to be released around Christmas.
Keep an eye on our website so you don’t miss the release.
Dementia Friendly Alliance of S.A.
Do you know someone living with Dementia?
The Onkaparinga Dementia Friendly Alliance of SA are a group of volunteers who offer friendship and emotional support to people with Dementia or other cognitive impairments and their carers.
Ginny’s story:
Ginny is her husband John’s full-time carer. Ginny came to one of their fortnightly sessions at Elizabeth House in 2021 and immediately felt “at home.”
Here were people who really understood what she was experiencing and both she and John were made to feel welcome.
They felt accepted by the friendly group of people living with dementia and their carers who were all “in the same boat” as themselves.
How can students reduce loneliness during the break?
The University of Adelaide has put together 5 evidence-based tips that students can use to feel less lonely during the Uni break.
Among these is checking in with others: making the time to check in and see people you know. This will help you build closer bonds with others.
Australia
Make social connection your New Year’s resolution
Commissioner Gwen Cherne, Veteran Family Advocate, writes about how we can overcome loneliness, particularly for Veteran families.
“Building and maintaining strong social connections is crucial for everyone. Yet, current research shows a decline in these connections,” she says.
“What actions can we take to help alleviate the problem of loneliness? One step is to build stronger connections within communities, including the veteran support sector.”
New findings: Loneliness in Focus
The NSW Mental Health Commission released their new report following a survey of over 2,600 NSW residents on community wellbeing.
The results found that almost half of NSW residents reported experiencing feelings of loneliness ‘some of the time’ or ‘often.’
People with self-reported mental health issues and those in the 18-29 age group more frequently reported experiencing loneliness, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.
Perinatal Mental Health Week
For Perinatal Mental Health week Ending Loneliness Together is encouraging anyone who knows an expecting or new parent to reach out and direct them to local groups.
The changes that come with raising a newborn may leave parents feeling isolated or lonely.
Having a 'village' or support network of people to talk to and connect with can make a huge difference.
International
Surgeon General Launches Nationwide “We Are Made to Connect” College Tour (US)
Recognising the significant challenges that loneliness poses to college-aged Americans, the Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. Vivek Murthy, is launching the national “We Are Made to Connect” Tour.
The Surgeon General will travel to colleges across the country to inspire people to incorporate moments of connection into their daily lives to help improve their health and well-being.
WHO launches new commission to foster social connection (US)
The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a new Commission on Social Connection to address loneliness as a pressing health threat, promote social connection as a priority, and accelerate solutions in countries of all incomes.
Northern Irish pub Charlies Bar's Christmas advert goes viral for shedding light on loneliness (UK)
The video has over one million views, and people have been reacting in their droves on social media as they take the video as a reminder to be kind and compassionate to others at this time of year.
The video represents how the smallest moments of socialisation can make the world of difference at a time of year that can be lonely for many.
New Social Isolation, Loneliness, and Connection (SILC) Intervention Catalog (US)
This catalogue includes a range of interventions, solutions, and service designs with the primary goals of fostering social connection and addressing social isolation and loneliness.
The Foundation aims for this catalogue to function as a repository for these interventions, offering a valuable resource for individuals in search of prospective solutions and collaborators.
Bill introduced to US House of Representatives that will standardise the measurements of loneliness and isolation (US)
The Secretary of Health and Human Services will establish a working group to make recommendations for standardising measurements of loneliness and isolation.
The Working Group will hope to standardise the measurements so the research is reliable and can therefore guide decision making.
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