Sense of loneliness and few friendships: the post-Covid malaise of young people

The repercussions of the pandemic and the repeated lockdowns on the mental health of a large part of the world population are becoming increasingly evident. Sense of loneliness, poor friendships, reduced sociability, in particular, seem to have affected especially the younger groups.

In Italy, the ninth edition of the Fair and Sustainable Wellbeing Report (Bes) of Istat, reported the case of 220 thousand young people between 14 and 19 who declare themselves “dissatisfied” with their lives and live in a condition of poor psychological well-being (with a score of the mental health index below the threshold that defines the condition of low psychological well-being).

According to a study carried out in the United Kingdom from Prince’s Truston the other hand, two years after the start of the lockdown measures, 35 percent of young people say they don’t know how to make new friends and have never felt so alone.

Although the reactions have been very different in scope, it is undeniable that friendship and loneliness have become two main concepts due to the pandemic.
Mostly loneliness seems to be more pervasive than ever, but it is difficult to say whether the cause was forced isolation from the virus or whether it simply revealed a crisis that was waiting to occur.
In the past, young people (aged 16-24) were not considered a separate demographic group in the UK. But in 2015, the project Loneliness the BBC interviewed over 50,000 people and found that their loneliness rates were similar to those of the elderly. A condition that the Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably accentuated.

According to the studies of Professor Timothy Matthews, whose psychiatry research focuses precisely on the sense of loneliness in young people, those who experience it when they go to high school leave the study with lower qualifications, they are more likely to have to struggle with daily stress, more sleep problems and suffer from anxiety and depression. A condition that occurs just when children are finishing school and could go to university, leave home, move to another city and try to establish themselves as independent adults.

From loneliness to anxiety

With the cancellation of music festivals, the closing of clubs and the forced study between lockdown and DAD, 40% of young people today say they suffer from socialization anxiety and a third say they do not know how to make new friends.
And although the restrictions are loosening more and more, young people are denouncing it crumbling of groups of friends And acute anxiety about going outinheritance linked to the measures for the control of Coronavirus infections and fear of spreading the virus.

According to what emerged from the polls, nearly a quarter of young people believed they would never recover from the emotional impact of the pandemic And almost half agree that the pandemic has left them “burned”. Another UK survey conducted by the Bureau of National Statistics also showed that young people between 16 and 29 are much more anxious than the general population.

“This alarming downward spiral of anxiety, stress and lack of confidence in the future will impact young people today and in future generations, widening the gap for the most disadvantaged,” commented Jonathan Townsend, CEO of Prince’s Trust. Adding that only with the right support from companies, government and charities will it be possible to reverse the situation and guarantee young people the right confidence and the opportunity to feel positive about their future work and their life in general.

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