Friendships

So does your current life resemble your pre-pandemic life? Have you resumed all of your old routines, and visited all of your previously cherished places and groups? Resumed an active social life? If so, consider yourself fortunate. Because many of your peers have not been able or willing to recreate…

English writer Virginia Woolf once wrote, “Some people go to priests; others to poetry; I to my friends.” In fact, Ms. Woolf was ahead of her time in understanding the essential importance of friendships in your life. Even more than spouses and relatives, friends are the essential relationships for our…

No doubt you know by now that social engagement is critical for healthy aging and that friendships can be some of the most important and rewarding relationships in your life as you get older. Through no fault of your own, however, friendships can fizzle and fray, or perhaps even disappear,…

It’s likely no surprise that loneliness continues to be a significant public health concern in the United States. As we reported last year when Surgeon General Vivek Murthy raised alarms about the public health crisis of loneliness in our country, loneliness is not only a subjective individual feeling of disappointment…

Though it’s not uncommon for older adults to live their later years in age-segregated communities, either by choice or by necessity, there’s also something to be said about mixing it up with younger people. In fact, the concept of an intergenerational friendship- that is, having a friend who is at…

Is there a difference between being alone and being lonely? At this point, so many older adults are alone, vulnerable to the health consequences that are more likely as a solo ager and without the supports that typically allow an older adult to remain active and engaged. But does being…