Combatting loneliness in Surrey
Published on 30 November 2017 04:55 PM
There are over 1.2 million older lonely people across England. Most people will feel lonely at some point in their lives, but unfortunately, for people in later life, loneliness can define their lives and have a significant impact on their wellbeing. No one should have no one at Christmas. Donate to Age UK Surrey to help us support older people in Surrey.
What causes loneliness?
There have been several studies that have identified a range of factors associated with being lonely in older age. These factors include:
- Social networks (living alone, being widowed or divorced, a lack of contact with friends and family and limited opportunities to participate in social occasions).
- Health (poor health, limited mobility, social care needs or cognitive and sensory impairment).
- Individual characteristics (age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, low income, retirement).
- Neighbourhood characteristics (structures of buildings and streets, provision of local amenities, territorial boundaries, area reputation, neighbourliness, material deprivation of area of residence).
Loneliness is associated with depression, sleep problems, impaired cognitive health, heightened vascular resistance, hypertension, psychological stress and mental health problems.
How Age UK Surrey helps:
To tackle the problem of loneliness among older people, Age UK Surrey runs local services, takes part in campaigns for more support from Government and connects older people groups. As an independent local charity we provide all of our own services independently and locally across Surrey.
If you would like more information on any of these services please call 01483 503414.