<p>In recent years, we've heard a lot of unsettling news about the loneliness epidemic and the dangers of social isolation. But could all this talk about loneliness paradoxically be making the problem... worse?</p> <p>Dr. Laurie unpacks what we get wrong about loneliness. Along the way, she speaks with historian <a href="https://fayboundalberti.com/" data-airgap-id="12">Fay Bound-Alberti</a> about why loneliness, as we think of it today, is a surprisingly modern phenomenon. Psychologist <a href="https://www.micaelarodriguez.com/" data-airgap-id="13">Micaela Rodriguez</a> explains why we often confuse loneliness with being alone — and why learning to enjoy solitude can actually make us less lonely. And writer <a href="https://www.emmagannon.co.uk/" data-airgap-id="14">Emma Gannon</a> shares practical tips for embracing the joy of your own company.</p> <p>Laurie discovers why spending time alone is a skill, and how getting better at it can help us regulate our emotions, spark creativity, and strengthen our connections with others.</p> <p><strong>Experts Mentioned:</strong></p> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com/" data-airgap-id="15">Vivek Murthy</a>, 19th and 21st Surgeon General of the United States</li> <li><a href="https://fayboundalberti.com/" data-airgap-id="16">Fay Bound-Alberti</a>, Professor of Modern History at King’s College London</li> <li><a href="https://www.micaelarodriguez.com/" data-airgap-id="17">Micaela Rodriguez</a>, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Yale University</li> <li><a href="https://www.emmagannon.co.uk/" data-airgap-id="18">Emma Gannon</a>, author, blogger, and podcaster </li> <li><a href="https://www.mattkillingsworth.com/" data-airgap-id="19">Matthew Killingsworth</a>, Senior Fellow at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania</li> <li><a href="https://batten.virginia.edu/people/timothy-wilson/" data-airgap-id="20">Timothy Wilson</a>, Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of Virginia</li> <li><a href="https://comm.osu.edu/people/campbell.2844" data-airgap-id="21">Scott Campbell</a>, Professor of Mediated Communication at The Ohio State University</li> <li><a href="https://juliacameronlive.com/" data-airgap-id="22">Julia Cameron</a>, author, poet, songwriter, filmmaker, and playwright</li> <li><a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pascal/" data-airgap-id="23">Blaise Pascal</a>, 17th-century French philosopher</li> </ul> <p><strong>Resources Mentioned:</strong></p> <ul> <li><em>“</em><a href="https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf" data-airgap-id="24"><em>Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community</em></a><em>,” by Office of the Surgeon General (2023)</em></li> <li>“<a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/30-06-2025-social-connection-linked-to-improved-heath-and-reduced-risk-of-early-death" data-airgap-id="25">Social connection linked to improved health and reduced risk of early death</a>,” by World Health Organization Media Team (2025)</li> <li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Biography-Loneliness-History-Emotion/dp/0198811349" data-airgap-id="26"><em>A Biography of Loneliness: The History of an Emotion</em></a><em>, by Fay Bound-Alberti (2019)</em></li> <li>“<a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1250830" data-airgap-id="27">Just think: The challenges of the disengaged mind</a>,” by Timothy Wilson, David Reinhard, Erin Westgate, Daniel Gilbert, Nicole Ellerbeck, Cheryl Hahn, Casey Brown, and Adi Shaked (<em>Science</em>, 2014)</li> <li>“<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-56764-3" data-airgap-id="28">How people think about being alone shapes their experience of loneliness</a>,” by Micaela Rodriguez, Kathryn E. Schertz, and Ethan Kross (<em>Nature Communications</em>, 2025)</li> <li>“<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02699931.2024.2445080" data-airgap-id="29">From ‘isolation’ to ‘me-time’: Linguistic shifts enhance solitary experiences</a>,” by Micaela Rodriguez and Scott Campbell (<em>Cognition and Emotion</em>, 2025)</li> <li>“<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jopy.12887" data-airgap-id="30">Solitude can be good—If you see it as such: Reappraisal helps lonely people experience solitude more positively</a>,” by Micaela Rodriguez, Samuel Pratt, Benjamin W. Bellet, and Richard J. McNally (<em>Journal of Personality</em>, 2023)</li> <li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Compass-Finding-Your-Life-ebook/dp/B0FVBBFDDG" data-airgap-id="31"><em>A Creative Compass: Finding Your Way to a Creative Life</em></a>, by Emma Gannon (2026)</li> <li>“<a href="https://thehyphen.substack.com/p/a-love-letter-to-solitude" data-airgap-id="32">A love letter to solitude</a>,” by Emma Gannon (<em>The Hyphen</em>, 2025)</li> <li>“‘<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/30/stigma-joy-table-for-one-solo-dining" data-airgap-id="33">Don’t you have friends to go with?’: the stigma and joy of a table for one</a>,” by Emma Gannon (<em>The Guardian</em>, 2026)</li> <li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Artists-Way-Spiritual-Higher-Creativity/dp/1585421472" data-airgap-id="34"><em>The Artist’s Way</em></a>, by Julia Cameron (1992)</li> </ul> <p><strong>Related Episodes:</strong></p> <ul> <li>“<a href="https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/the-happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos/bonus-beat-your-isolation-loneliness" data-airgap-id="35">Beat Your Isolation Loneliness</a>”</li> <li>“<a href="https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/the-happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos/fighting-that-meh-feeling-of-languishing" data-airgap-id="36">Fighting that "Meh" Feeling of Languishing</a>”</li> <li>“<a href="https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/the-happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos/emotions-are-data-so-listen-to-them" data-airgap-id="37">Emotions Are Data…So Listen to Them</a>”</li> </ul><p>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.</p>
