Loneliness FAQ
Here are short answers to the questions that come up most often about loneliness and this room.
Is this therapy?
This room is educational writing about loneliness. It isn't therapy, counseling, or treatment, and it can't diagnose anyone. If you need care, please talk with your doctor or a counselor.
Will this find me people, or deliver a friend?
These pages suggest small next steps, like one message or one visit to a place where people gather. No page can promise you a friend, because other people make their own choices. You won't find tips here for persuading or managing anyone into keeping you company.
Is loneliness a reason to stop my antidepressant, or any other prescribed medicine?
Loneliness is never a reason to stop, skip, or change a prescribed medicine on your own. Keep taking it as prescribed whether your evenings get better or worse, and talk with your doctor before any change. If you're in crisis in the United States, call or text 988 (https://988lifeline.org/).
What if the loneliness is a crisis?
If you're frightened or don't feel safe, please don't spend the night alone with a web page. In the United States, call or text 988 (https://988lifeline.org/). You don't need to decide first whether your pain counts. If you're outside the United States, call your local emergency number or a local crisis line. This site has no public inbox and can't answer a crisis.
Who is this room for?
This room is for anyone who feels lonely. You might recognize your week in one of the shorter pages: long evenings at home, a move to a new city, a holiday without guests, friends who moved away, or friendships that mostly happen online. Younger readers are welcome, and so is everyone else.
How should I read this room?
Start with one page. The main page is the loneliness room. If a situation sounds like yours, try a new city, long evenings at home, younger and lonely, holidays alone, after friends moved, or online-only friendships. If you're new to the site, If you’re lonely is a short starting path. The glossary defines loneliness and adjunct to care, and the site FAQ covers the whole site. One page is plenty for tonight.
Have these pages been medically reviewed?
These pages have not been medically reviewed yet, so please don't treat them as if they had. They're an adjunct to care, meaning education to use alongside your doctor's help and the people in your life.
Is the shop open, and will a product promise me company?
The shop is closed. You can look at the planned guides, but you can't buy anything yet. No guide, now or later, will promise you a friend or take the place of care.
Are younger readers who are lonely welcome?
Younger readers are welcome, including anyone who wants company while they learn and anyone with questions about a medicine. The medicine rule is the same at every age: keep taking it as prescribed and talk with your doctor before changing anything. The page Younger, and lonely covers this in more detail.
What about a holiday alone, or a friendship that lives only online?
Both have their own pages. Holidays alone covers getting through the day without forced cheer, and online-only friendships covers friendships on a screen that some evenings aren't enough. Neither situation is a reason to stop or change a prescribed medicine. If the day turns into a crisis, call or text 988 (https://988lifeline.org/).
How does this room relate to the depression room?
Loneliness and depression are different things, though they can show up in the same week. This site can't tell you which one you're living with, so if you're unsure, talk with your doctor. The depression room offers education alongside care, has the same rule about medicine, and is also not yet medically reviewed.
The main page is the loneliness room, short answers for the whole site are in the FAQ, and the glossary defines loneliness and adjunct to care. If you're new here, start with If you’re lonely. Shorter pages from across the site are in the library. The shop is closed, and nothing there is for sale.
If you're in crisis in the United States, call or text 988 (https://988lifeline.org/) before you keep reading. A real person can stay on the line with you, and your doctor can help with the longer road.