How Do Mental and Emotional Illnesses Affect Social Health?

Surveys have found that 60 percent of Americans are feeling lonely right now. And this rate is far higher than it was in the 1970s.

Many people may blame this trend on a variety of factors. These include technology and longer working hours. But there may be something else at play. 

The rate of mental health disorders has also been increasing. Having a mental health disorder can lead to social health issues. So maybe the increase in mental illnesses has led to an increase in social illnesses. 

But things aren't that simple. Poor social health can also lead to poor mental health. Read on to learn more about the connection between the two. 

What Is Mental Health? 

If physical health refers to the health of the body, mental health refers to the health of the mind. Our relative level of mental health affects how we act, think, and feel. 

In addition, it affects how we make choices and handle adversity. Plus, we empathize better with others when we're mentally healthy. 

Good Mental Health 

Someone with good mental health may be able to cope with life's problems better. This can help them perform better at work and/or school. Plus, they can build strong and healthy relationships and be active members of their communities.

In general, when someone has great mental health, they're more likely to function better as a human. 

Bad Mental Health

People with poor mental health are more likely to function poorly. They may struggle with daily tasks, relationships, and work and/or school. Personal development may also be a struggle for these people. 

As a result, they may not contribute as much to the world around them. 

Mental Health Varies 

Keep in mind that mental health isn't a one size fits all.

One person with a mental illness may seem happy and do well in relationships. But they may struggle at work or school. Another person may seem unhappy and isolated but find great success in work or school.

Yet, a loved one may worry about the latter person more than the former. The latter person is more clearly exhibiting emotional problems. Still, the former person may be more of a danger to themselves than the latter person. 

Mental health is a jumble of factors and symptoms. In some situations, some of these can worsen others. In other situations, certain factors and symptoms won't affect others. 

What Is Emotional Health? 

Many experts will divide mental health into subcategories like social and emotional health. Emotional health refers to someone's ability to handle and control their emotions. 

Good Emotional Health 

Someone with good emotional health will still experience negative emotions. However, this individual will experience these emotions at a much lower intensity level.

One's emotional intensity level isn't always the victim's fault. Sometimes a higher emotional intensity is the result of genetics. However, this isn't usually the case. 

Emotionally healthy individuals likely have coping mechanisms in place. They turn to them when they experience negative emotions. This can make these emotions easier to deal with. 

Bad Emotional Health 

Bad emotional health doesn't necessarily result from a lack of coping mechanisms. In many cases, people who have emotional problems also have coping skills. Issues occur when their coping mechanisms are not healthy. 

Bad coping mechanisms are often harmful actions. They can include addictions like drugs, social media, and alcohol. Indulging in these addictions can worsen their emotional health over time.

What Is Social Health? 

Your social health depends on how well you build relationships. It also relates to the quality of those relationships. This often depends on how well you handle social situations. 

Some experts believe that social health is an aspect of mental health. Others believe that it's separate. What matters most is that social health can affect mental and emotional issues. 

The reverse is also true. 

Good Social Health 

Someone who is socially healthy can handle social situations with ease. They can read the emotions and actions of others well. In addition, they can act in ways other people will like. 

Because of this, people will want to be around them. As a result, the socially healthy person will form relationships with these people. In the best scenarios, these relationships will be deep and long-lasting. 

Bad Social Health 

A person with the worst possible social health will be unable to form relationships. There are a lot of reasons why this can happen. This article will explain more about such situations further below. 

Remember, though, that mental health isn't as black and white as people may want to believe. People who are socially unhealthy may be able to form relationships. The relationships they form, however, may be of poor quality. 

Problems Caused By Poor Social Health 

Humans are social creatures. Having genuine connections with people around us is vital for us. If we have poor social health, our health is likely failing in other ways as well. 

This isn't just wishful thinking. Scientists have proven again and again how loneliness affects our health. Consider the following issues: 

Emotional Illnesses 

People who struggle with loneliness are more likely to struggle with emotional illnesses. Such illnesses include anxiety and depression. 

This makes sense. Strong social bonds can protect us from some of life's challenges. For example, a friend or family member can lend you money when you're broke. 

More scientifically, however, scientists have found that loneliness increases stress hormones like cortisol. An overabundance of these chemicals can trigger anxiety and depression. Perhaps we have this reaction because our genetics want us to stay together. 

Addictions 

Addiction issues are also common for people who feel lonely. Scientists have found several correlations between loneliness and people who have "classic" addictions. That is, loneliness was correlated with drug addiction and alcoholism. 

More recently, scientists have found links between loneliness and other digital addictions. This study, for instance, found a link between loneliness and smartphone addiction. Other studies have found links between video game addiction and loneliness. 

Also, people deal with negative feelings by taking substances. And loneliness causes negative feelings. So it makes sense for loneliness to cause negative feelings. 

Suicidal Thoughts 

Suicidal thoughts and behaviors are other factors that loneliness can create or aggravate. Experts found that social network issues often occurred before suicide attempts. Romantic issues were one of the most prominent causes. 

Consider also that lonely people may spend a lot of time in their own heads. Doing this can cause them to ruminate about their issues. Without any distraction, these thoughts can become more intense until they're unmanageable. 

Plus, mental health issues can also cause suicidal behaviors. And as we mentioned, loneliness can lead to emotional problems like anxiety and depression. 

Insomnia 

People who struggle with insomnia are less social. But loneliness may not have caused insomnia. Many people have sleep difficulties first and have loneliness issues later. 

Could sleeping issues make people less socially healthy? It's possible. Researchers found that sleepier individuals didn't want to interact with others. 

On top of this, sleep issues can make people struggle to regulate their emotions. This could cause them to act negatively toward other people. As a result, they may scare these people away. 

Heart Failure 

According to this study, loneliness increased the risk of heart failure death by 15% to 20%. The study also looked at social isolation. However, loneliness was a more important factor. 

What's interesting is how this study defines loneliness. These experts defined loneliness as "feeling lonely". So even people with many friends and family members could feel lonely. 

This feeling could happen because of poor relationships. However, a mental illness can also cause this feeling. Many mental illnesses can cause self-confidence and paranoia issues. 

Immune System Issues 

Scientists have found that socially isolated individuals experience a dysregulated immune system. Their immune systems can overreact to bacteria and/or viruses.

This can eventually cause them to tire and shut down. The body isn't meant to have a high immune response for a long period. As a result, diseases can affect lonely individuals more.

Keep in mind that this happens alongside addictions and sleeping issues. So a person who is not socially healthy will struggle with their health a lot. This can, in turn, cause them to feel bad and sink into mental health issues. 

Cancer 

Lonely men have higher chances of developing cancer later in life. The specific study covered here showed that lung cancer was most associated with loneliness. But experts in other studies have connected loneliness to colon cancer. 

Maybe the aforementioned immune system issue was behind this. After all, cancer cells are eradicated by the immune system regularly. A tired immune system can't fight cancer cells. 

Earlier Mortality 

People who aren't socially healthy have a higher chance of dying prematurely. To be more specific, they have an increased early mortality chance of 26% to 32%. Some experts even estimate that loneliness is more dangerous than obesity or smoking. 

This should come as no surprise. Look back at all of the loneliness-related health hazards. 

Memory Aging 

This study looked at 46,240 adults that were 65 years or older. These seniors were given a questionnaire. In it, they answered questions about their social health and memory health.  

These experts found that not being socially healthy led to memory problems. That is, lonely seniors were more likely to have dementia-related conditions. 

However, scientists have found that social isolation doesn't have the same effect on all senior adults. This study found that lonely Swedish seniors had memory issues. Lonely German seniors didn't have the same issues. 

Perhaps cultural differences can make individuals more loneliness tolerant. In addition, maybe not being socially healthy is more subjective than objective. 

Educational Performance 

Loneliness can also make it more difficult for students to succeed in school. Lonely young adults achieve less academically by age 18 than their less lonely peers. They are also more likely to drop out of school by age 16. 

Negative social outcomes may lead to students thinking negatively about school. As a result, they may want to leave school as soon as possible. This may especially be the case when they face extreme social problems like bullying. 

In addition, loneliness causes sleeping issues. These issues could make it more difficult for students to learn and work. These struggles can cause them to flunk out of school or get into poorer-quality colleges. 

Work Performance 

Work effectiveness can also lessen in the fact of loneliness. Workers who don't feel connected to their peers become detached from the organization. As a result, they'll be less involved in functions and decision-making processes. 

This lack of motivation can also cause a drop in the employee's job performance. They may also struggle in training. Loneliness affects memory and other cognitive well-being factors.

Plus, these employees are likely to quit their jobs. How can they continue to work at places where they don't feel a sense of belonging? To them, it likely makes no sense. 

Team leaders can make efforts to alleviate employees' loneliness. Unfortunately, they may believe that employees should deal with loneliness on their own. 

What Factors Worsen Social Health? 

People usually don't choose to be bad at social interaction. They become this way due to outside factors. Below, you'll find examples of some of these factors. 

Emotional Dysregulation 

Emotional problems don't just come from loneliness. They can also cause loneliness. This study found that lonelier people dealt with matters in emotionally unhealthy ways. 

These issues caused people to reject or withdraw from others. This makes sense. People with poor emotional health may believe they're "not good enough" to be with others. 

Plus, people who struggle with emotional regulation likely struggle to stay calm around friends. They could have emotional breakdowns in front of them that friends can't quell. This can push friends and family members away. 

Social Anxiety 

Socially anxious people often feel intensely afraid of interacting with others. They may worry about embarrassing themselves in front of people. In addition, they expect the worst outcomes to come from social situations. 

To protect themselves from their fears, these individuals may avoid social situations. This doesn't just have to include noisy parties and club activities. They can also attempt to avoid work, school, and other obligations. 

It's obvious how social anxiety can make people socially isolated. But loneliness can cause social anxiety too. Feeling unloved can make one anxious. 

So it can be a vicious cycle. 

Autism 

Autism is another mental health disorder that can cause loneliness. Many people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have low social skills. This happens for many reasons. 

To start with, many autistic individuals struggle to read non-verbal communication cues. Others acquire speaking skills later than usual. They can also blow up as a result of struggling with these issues. 

Autistic individuals can acquire social skills. Certain psychological strategies can help them. Unfortunately, these methods only work so well. 

Therefore, ASD individuals may struggle to gain social relationships. This is unfortunate, as many autistic people desperately want to be socially healthy. 

ADHD 

Attentive deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is related to ASD in many ways. Some people have both ASD and ADHD at the same time. Perhaps this is why many people categorize them together under the term "neurodiversity". 

In addition, ADHDers also struggle in social situations. But this isn't necessarily because they struggle to read social skills. Their social struggle mostly comes from some of the actions ADHD makes them perform. 

Great communicators are attentive, responsible, and not impulsive. These are things that ADHDers are not. They struggle to pay attention, forget things often, and are impulsive. 

Someone without ADHD may find this behavior rude. So the ADHD individual will be constantly socially rejected. At a certain point, ADHDers will give up on being socially healthy. 

Depression 

Loneliness can cause depression. However, depression can also cause people to withdraw socially. 

One of the symptoms of depression is losing interest in activities one used to enjoy. This can include being around loved ones. In addition, you may lose interest in activities you do with loved ones. 

In addition, it can be hard for mentally healthy individuals to understand depressed people. Loved ones may believe the victims can snap out of it if you try. They may also think that they're too privileged to be depressed. 

When depressed people feel misunderstood, they may withdraw from their loved ones. This can make their social isolation and its consequences worse than before. 

Borderline Personality Disorder 

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) sufferers often exhibit mood swings and intense emotions. As mentioned, emotional problems can lead to issues with social health. In addition, people with BPD may attempt to push loved ones away. 

Conversely, many victims of this disorder fear abandonment. So they may act aggressively and/or impulsively toward a loved one to keep them close. This can cause them to push their loved ones away unintentionally. 

You can see how this situation can become difficult. Luckily, there are therapies available for BPD individuals that can help. This can improve these social skills and make them more socially healthy. 

Being Older 

People of certain ages are less likely to be socially healthy than others. For example, older adults struggle more with loneliness than younger adults. They experience this more because of some of the unique challenges they face. 

Older people live alone in greater numbers. This is because many of their friends may have passed on. In addition, their older friends may struggle to visit them because of mobility issues. 

Hearing issues are another social barrier. It can be difficult for people with hearing loss to communicate with others. Even if seniors have people around them, they may feel lonely because they can't understand them. 

Luckily, special programs such as Friend to Friend America combat senior loneliness. Seniors can also be social in living centers. This should help minimize the health effects of loneliness. 

Being Younger 

It's not just the elderly who feel lonely. Younger people are struggling too. However, this may be a more recent phenomenon. 

Recent studies have found that Gen Z and Millennials were lonelier than other generations. Experts have many theories as to why this is the case. Technological dependence is, of course, one of them. 

However, changing family dynamics is another possible contributor. Gen Zers lived in single-parent households more than other generations. They also had fewer family meals together with their families. 

So society could be changing in a way that makes people lonelier. 

Discrimination 

Groups of people who are discriminated against can also be lonely. One study found that one in three black people struggled with loneliness. That was a higher rate than the general population. 

A similar concern happens with LGBTQ+ members. Sexuality minorities are more likely to be single and childless. Also, they have less contact with their original families. 

Many are doing what they can to fight discrimination. One can hope that these efforts will succeed. When they do, minorities will hopefully be more socially healthy. 

Work 

Work is also pushing people into loneliness. For one thing, longer working hours are leaving people without personal time. In America, this is worse: US workers have less vacation time than in other countries. 

Plus, there's the matter of work burnout. This can leave people feeling exhausted and dehumanized. These symptoms can cause them to self-isolate. 

The only cure for this is a better work-life balance. Unfortunately, that's harder to do these days. The minimum wage isn't rising but inflation is. 

Perhaps getting a better job can help. 

Social, Mental, and Emotional Health Connections 

As you can see, mental illnesses can become vicious cycles. Mental health issues can exacerbate social ones. Social health issues can exacerbate mental illness issues.

Much of the same thing happens with emotional health issues. Emotional problems can break people apart. People are less emotionally stable when they're lonely. 

However, there's more to it than that. Let's go over what we've learned. The links between social, mental, and emotional health issues are: 

Mental/Emotional Issues Cause Loneliness 

People who struggle with mental issues can be more isolated. Their mental illness may cause them to push people away. This happens because of exhaustion, not feeling good enough, etc. 

In other situations, people push the mentally ill away. Symptoms of certain emotional health problems can seem rude or frightening. This isn't the ill person's fault.

Loneliness Causes Mental/Emotional Issues 

Unfortunately, loneliness can make existing emotional problems worse. People who find isolation for other reasons may develop emotional problems. These can make it harder for them to find people. 

Other Issues That Cause Loneliness 

Emotional and mental issues aren't the only causes of loneliness. Other factors can lessen or increase loneliness as well. 

Someone's race, sexuality, and/or gender identity can isolate them from others. They can also be in situations where they can't reach others easily. 

Other Consequences of Loneliness 

Lonely people don't just deal with mental and emotional problems. They can also experience health problems. These will cause them to live a shorter life. 

Then there are the functional issues. People who struggle in work and school will experience more stress. This can cause more mental and emotional health issues. 

Ways to Better Your Social Health 

Luckily, no one is stuck with poor social health. There are many ways you can relieve these issues. Doing this may free you from the vicious cycle. 

Take the following steps: 

Treat Your Mental Illness 

Do you suffer from mental or emotional health problems? If so, you should seek treatment. Doing this can improve your social health. 

Yes, psychological treatment can get expensive. But there are plenty of lower-cost options available these days. Some states even offer publically funded mental health treatment. 

Do your research and leave no stone turned. If you can't find mental health help, use the many information sources available on the internet. There are many books, articles, and videos available that can help you. 

Strengthen Your Relationships

Do you already have friends but still feel lonely? It could be that your relationships aren't deep enough. Luckily, there are ways to deepen relationships. 

Try asking the friends you have out for activities. You can use the time you spend with them to interact and grow closer. They'll be asking you for events soon. 

This technique can work even if you're not close to people. It's one of the best ways to turn acquaintances into friends. 

Balance Your Life and Work 

Having a good work/life balance can give you the time for social activities. If you want to be more social, push for less work hours. Even if it seems impossible, you may feel surprised at how easy it is in practice. 

Ask your boss for fewer hours. If they don't grant your request, try to look for any time wasters you have. Do you need all those video game hours or can you sacrifice them for time with friends? 

Getting a new job is also an option. Just don't leave your old job before you have a plan. That'll make you too stressed. 

Find People Like You 

You don't need to fit in with everyone to be socially healthy. The right crowd may be what you need. You may be able to find the sense of belonging you need in that group. 

There are many support groups for ADHDers, autistic individuals, and LGBTQ+ members. You should also be able to find social groups for different people of color. Mental health support resources tailored to these groups also exist. 

Maybe once you heal in these groups you can reach out to others who are different than you. If you fail to make friends there again, the connections you make should have your back.

Join a Club or Group 

Race, gender, and sexuality aren't the only things people can have in common. People can also love the same hobbies, movie genres, etc. You can usually find such groups of people meeting up at clubs. 

Look around! Sites like Meetup.com have a ton of clubs that are available in your local area. You may also find groups and clubs at your local library and/or community center. 

By having something in common with other group members, you're bound to grow closer to them. You can then make friendships that could last a lifetime. 

Take a Class 

Taking a class can have many of the same benefits as joining a club or group. As long as it isn't private, you should be able to meet other people. An added benefit is that you can learn something new. 

Think about something that you've always wanted to do. This could be learning to dance, a new language, or how to cook something delicious. Then search for a group class that will teach you what you want to know. 

Your local community center will likely have some classes available. Looking at the advertisements on corkboards in your local store, restaurant, etc. can also help. People offering classes often advertise classes there. 

Volunteer 

Volunteering can help you feel connected to your local community. You can also get close to the people that you're volunteering with. Plus, feeling needed can help you ease your loneliness. 

Try looking online for places that need volunteers. You can also contact different places in your area and ask if they need volunteers. Heck, even helping your elderly neighbor for free counts as volunteering. 

Find a Mentor 

Signing up for a mentorship program is another way that you can become more social. Plus, mentors can help you improve yourself in several ways. They can help you grow your career, become resilient, and more. 

Consider looking around in your local area for mentorship programs. 

We Help Social Health Goals 

There are a lot of symptoms that worsen social health. Poor social health also worsens other symptoms. The best thing you can do is target a few of the symptoms and break the vicious cycle. 

Here at the Honor Society, we prioritize mental health. In doing so, we empower our members to reach their full potential. Join now by filling out the form on this page.