Isolation / Loneliness

Whether it’s a cheek rub or a tail wag, many of us can’t resist the love and affection we feel from animals. And while there’s plenty of work involved as a pet owner, the upside is pretty clear: Surveys and studies show real physical and emotional benefits from pet companionship…

Those of us grew up during the early days of television probably remember Robby The Robot or the robot B-9 from “Lost in Space” – large, clunky machines that possessed some primitive human characteristics. But today’s robots, particularly those that mimic animals, are sophisticated machines with qualities and responses that…

It’s been said that a friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future and accepts you just the way you are. But for many of us, having or making a good friend as we get older seems almost beyond reach. Friends from the past may have fallen…

If you’ve been paying attention to the news, or are just a consumer of popular culture, you know that loneliness is now considered a major public health problem. In a bit of irony, it seems the more “connected” we are as a culture, the more many of us feel alone…

It may not come as a surprise, but the statistics are nonetheless distressing. In a new national poll of adults ages 50-80 from the University of Michigan, one in three respondents admitted they feel a lack of companionship and many also conveyed a feeling of social isolation. Women were especially prone…

For many of us, there’s nothing more pleasurable than grabbing a book and settling down for a spell of reading. As children, our parents may have instilled in us a love of books and as adults, we probably have more books than we can ever read or comfortably house. If…