Loneliness: How to Cope and Feel More Connected (Including at Christmas)

What is loneliness?

Loneliness is about how connected you feel, not how many people are around you. You can feel lonely in a busy office or a full house, and content living alone. It often comes with life changes: moving, a breakup, bereavement, becoming a parent, retiring, working from home, or health problems. Government figures for 2024 to 2025 found about 7% of adults in England felt lonely often or always.

Signs of loneliness

• Feeling left out, unseen or misunderstood
• Having no one to call when something good or bad happens
• Spending more time scrolling and less with people
• Low mood or anxiety. See anxiety symptoms
• Poor sleep. See how to sleep better
• Feeling tired and flat. See why am I always tired?

Why loneliness matters for your health

Feeling connected is good for both mind and body. A large review of studies following people over many years found that loneliness and social isolation were linked to a higher risk of dying early, on a par with other well-known lifestyle risks. Loneliness is also linked to low mood, anxiety and poor sleep. Connecting with others is one of the NHS’s 5 steps to mental wellbeing.

Coping with loneliness: small steps that help

When it feels as if you can’t stop the loneliness, big plans can seem impossible. Small, regular steps are easier to keep up, and connection grows with repetition. NHS Every Mind Matters and the Campaign to End Loneliness both suggest starting with the people and places already around you.

• One contact a day. A text, a voice note, or a hello to a neighbour or shopkeeper. Brief chats count.
• Keep a routine. Regular mealtimes, a daily walk and a set bedtime give the day shape, especially if you live alone or work from home.
• Put something regular in the diary. A weekly class, club, faith group or walking group means seeing the same faces each time.
• Volunteer. Helping out puts you alongside people with a shared purpose, so you don’t have to think of things to say.
• Get outside in daylight. In autumn and winter, a morning or lunchtime walk catches the most light. See beating the winter blues.
• Limit late-night scrolling. Comparing yourself with other people online can leave you feeling more left out, and everything tends to feel bigger late at night. Try putting your phone away an hour before bed.
• Be kind to yourself. Loneliness is a sign that you need connection, not a sign that something is wrong with you. Talk to yourself as you would to a friend.

If the thought of walking into a new group makes you nervous, you’re not alone in that. Our guides to anticipatory anxiety and how to deal with anxiety have ways to make the first step feel smaller.

12 ways to feel less lonely

Loneliness at Christmas and in winter

Christmas can make loneliness feel sharper, with everyone else seemingly surrounded by people. A few things help:

• Plan your days in advance so there’s something to look forward to.
• Volunteer on Christmas Day; many charities welcome helpers.
• Arrange calls or video chats with friends or family.
• Look for community events such as Christmas lunches or open church services.
• Limit social media, which can be full of picture-perfect moments.
• Keep a routine with walks, meals and decent sleep. See sleeping well at Christmas.

See also Christmas stress, the winter blues and seasonal affective disorder.

Winter and Christmas: free UK support lines

Darker evenings, cold weather and fewer chances to bump into people can make loneliness harder from autumn onwards, and Christmas can bring it to a head. If you’d like someone to talk to:

• The Silver Line (Age UK), for people aged 55 and over: 0800 4 70 80 90. Free, 24 hours a day, every day. It offers friendly conversation rather than emergency help.
• Samaritans, for anyone: 116 123. Free, 24 hours a day.
• CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably): 0800 58 58 58, 5pm to midnight every day, or webchat on its website.

When loneliness won’t go away

Feeling lonely now and then is part of life. If it has lasted weeks or months, or it comes with low mood, losing interest in things you used to enjoy, poor sleep or not wanting to see anyone, it’s worth getting support. Our guide to low mood vs depression covers the signs to look out for.

• Talk to your GP. They can talk through how you feel and point you to local support, including social prescribers who link people with groups and activities nearby.
• NHS Talking Therapies (England). Adults registered with a GP can refer themselves for help with anxiety and depression, without seeing a GP first. Find your local service on the NHS website.
• If loneliness follows a loss, our guide to grief covers bereavement support.

How to help someone who’s lonely

• Get in touch regularly, not just once.
• Invite them to something specific: “Fancy a walk on Saturday?”
• Listen more than you advise.
• Check in on older neighbours and relatives, especially in winter.

A thoughtful gift and a visit can mean a lot. See calming gift ideas.

Where to get support

If loneliness is affecting your mood, sleep or daily life, speak to your GP. Adults in England can refer themselves to NHS Talking Therapies. Samaritans are there day and night on 116 123. If you’re having thoughts of harming yourself, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option, or 999 in an emergency.

Looking after yourself matters too. A warm drink, a book and an early night make a simple evening ritual. Our Reishi Mushroom Adaptogenic Complex is a cosy hot chocolate, and our Magnesium Glycinate Sleep Complex is a bedtime drink. Magnesium contributes to normal psychological function. Our products are for adults only. We don’t recommend our products during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

Related guides

• Hygge for cosy evenings with others.
• See our winter wellness guide.
• Home working can be isolating. See working from home and mental health.
• If loneliness is bringing your mood down, see low mood vs depression.
• If loneliness follows a loss, see grief: how to cope.
• Highly sensitive person.
• Brew Monday, Samaritans’ answer to Blue Monday.
• Eating for comfort when you feel lonely.
• Time with people supports oxytocin and endorphins. More in our guide to happy hormones.
• If December feels long, our wellness advent calendar gives you one small act of self-care, or of connection, for each day.
• If fear of being judged is what keeps you from seeing people, it may be social anxiety disorder, which is common and treatable.
• A shared experience, such as a walk or a class, can be a lovely present; see our wellness gift ideas for more.
• A small, thoughtful present can be a good reason to reach out: see our wellness gifts by budget, from under £10.
• A small, thoughtful present can be a good reason to visit someone who lives alone: our hot chocolate gift ideas start with a DIY jar that costs a few pounds.
• If your mum lives alone, our guide to Christmas presents for mum includes gifts that bring people in, from photo frames to a standing Sunday call.
• If someone you love lives on their own, a small parcel can help: see our thinking of you gift ideas.
• For a dad or grandad who lives alone, our Christmas gifts for dad and parents guide has ideas that bring people in.
• If an older relative lives alone, our Christmas gifts for nan guide has gift ideas that bring people in.
• Our gifts for grandad guide has ideas that bring people in, from a digital photo frame to a local Men’s Shed.