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This is laughable. It is only recently that we had the opportunity to meeting a lot of people.
Most of our nature is based on how we evolved for millions of years before history. Most people grew up in small, tightly knit units like extended families or tribes, and we knew virtually everyone we normally interacted with. It might be only 10-20 people, but we knew them really, really well. There were no secrets. We knew when anyone was sick, or feeling sad, or whatever. Sure, occasionally someone would wander off and get lost and live by themselves until the end of time, but that was not normal. Even in more recent times I suspect a lot of people had larger social circles. It was routine when I was growing up that we would have enough kids from the neighborhood to field two complete baseball teams against each other, meaning there were ties to probably at least four or five families right there. My mom would have me go down the street and shout over the fence to another mom to borrow a cup of sugar. Everyone on our block in a city knew each other by name, and as a kid I think I probably had been in every house on the block too. Not so much anymore.
They have been trying to sell that line for years that "social isolation" causes health issues. This is laughable. It is only recently that we had the opportunity to meeting a lot of people. Up until about 1950 if you had 2 or 3 friends that you wrote too (taking weeks) you considered yourself lucky.
There is no way it would have any effect on longevity.
But "social isolation" does hurt something... the economy. So they try to tell you that you will die if you don't go out to eat. Laughable.
Having a spent most of my life around a wide variety of older folks with varying personality types (introverts, extroverts, and pretty much every type in between), I can tell you that social isolation is very damaging. It's part of the reason that a lot of older folks experience a sharp decline in emotional health and cognitive ability when they've outlived pretty much all of their friends and family and didn't nurture multi-generational relationships over the years. I see it with not just older people, but with the younger folks who don't have the sort of casual social interactions that previous generations took for granted. There are plenty of lonely people amongst the younger generation, too,which feeds into a lot of physical and emotional ills.
Previous generations tended to belong to various groups (church/temple, social clubs, charity organizations and societies) that helped to keep those community and social connections alive. Boomers tended to move around more than previous generations, experienced a sharp decline in participating in organized religion, and didn't tend to be "joiners" or volunteers like their parents' were at a similar ages. It's no wonder that they're experiencing the effects of this sort of lifestyle as they age.
Human beings--even the introverts among us (I'm one of them as is pretty much everyone in my circle of family and close friends)--are social animals, even if many of us don't require huge amounts of social interaction. It's one thing to choose to be alone and enjoy one's own company; it's quite another to have aloneness thrust upon a person.
Last edited by Formerly Known As Twenty; 08-05-2020 at 12:37 PM..
Most of our nature is based on how we evolved for millions of years before history. Most people grew up in small, tightly knit units like extended families or tribes, and we knew virtually everyone we normally interacted with. It might be only 10-20 people, but we knew them really, really well. There were no secrets. We knew when anyone was sick, or feeling sad, or whatever. Sure, occasionally someone would wander off and get lost and live by themselves until the end of time, but that was not normal. Even in more recent times I suspect a lot of people had larger social circles. It was routine when I was growing up that we would have enough kids from the neighborhood to field two complete baseball teams against each other, meaning there were ties to probably at least four or five families right there. My mom would have me go down the street and shout over the fence to another mom to borrow a cup of sugar. Everyone on our block in a city knew each other by name, and as a kid I think I probably had been in every house on the block too. Not so much anymore.
This is exactly describes the neighborhood and small town in which I was raised! To this day, if I look at my FB friends list, I can see how everyone is connected from back home. Pretty much everyone is related by blood, marriage, school, neighborhood, or work (with a lot of overlap between multiple categories). Someone dies? Has a baby? Has illness in the family or is ill him/herself? People know about it and act accordingly (food brought over, lawn mowed, snow removed), even today.
As a whole, the older folks there seem to be very alert and mentally active, which, at least anecdotally, proves to me the value of social interaction as we age.
No, I do not, and my sisters do not. Maybe, just maybe, your own cognitive dysfunction is messing with your view of other people? Just maybe... think about it. You are obviously quite set in your thought patterns, but maybe you can change them if you give it more thought and let new ideas settle into your brain for a while.
No, I do not, and my sisters do not. Maybe, just maybe, your own cognitive dysfunction is messing with your view of other people? Just maybe... think about it. You are obviously quite set in your thought patterns, but maybe you can change them if you give it more thought and let new ideas settle into your brain for a while.
No you have it, no you have it, no you have it... mature.
It is a testament to how out of wack the boomers are that they run here to defend themselves without ever thinking about it. Desperate.
Someone dies? Has a baby? Has illness in the family or is ill him/herself? People know about it and act accordingly (food brought over, lawn mowed, snow removed), even today.
Same here! This is one reason I think some people are making a mistake by pulling up roots and retiring in another state because of the weather, or taxes, or some such. My dad is 90 and has lived in the same town for about 63 years, and he has numerous friends of many ages he knows, goes to board meetings, events, parties, etc. Nothing dramatic or exotic, but a lot of nice friendly things to be doing when you're that age. If he needs help with something in this pandemic he has close family right there and other friends who would instantly go the pharmacy or pick up food from the supermarket. Those close social networks are even more important during the pandemic.
No you have it, no you have it, no you have it... mature.
It is a testament to how out of wack the boomers are that they run here to defend themselves without ever thinking about it. Desperate.
Frankly, you're the one being kind of immature. Instead of obviously trying to insult or belittle someone by saying "you definitely have cognitive decline", why not stick to the topic you yourself started?
We all experience cognitive decline, starting around age 19 or so. We were not designed to live to 60 or above. Throughout most of human history until the last few centuries, most of us died by age 30.
As more of us live past 70, 80, even 100, we are pushing the envelope of what the brain can handle.
Add on top of that the hyper-stimulation of the modern information age, another thing our brains were actually not designed to handle, and we are in uncharted territory.
Everyone's got ADD, short memory, forgetting words. It's an international trend.
My fantasy life is to sell the house, get out of the urban area, and buy a homestead in the country somewhere. Grow food, raise farm animals, and let the rhythm of the seasons guide me, instead of the cray-cray wackiness of the internet.
IMHO, the answer is Statins. Every boomer I know on statins is suffering from memory loss and other cognitive issues.
IMO, it's the same reason almost 1/2 of all Americans are at risk of severe disease from Covid.
Obesity, HBP, diabetes-in other words underlying health conditions.
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