“far too many people ... have no one to talk to or share their thoughts and experiences with”

Theresa May (UK Prime Minister)

On Wednesday last week there was an announcement of a new UK Government Minister of Loneliness (hopefully not 'for' loneliness). Tracey Crouch (whilst also being Minister for Sport & Civil Society) will 'lead on loneliness', and will therefore head up the government’s work to tackle this problem – with this appointment apparently being the result of the identification of a continued breakdown of social support networks generally across society, and this then having a profound effect on many people's psychological (and physical) well-being, with loneliness now affecting around 9 million people across the UK.

All of this is apparently in response to a report from the Jo Cox Loneliness Commission identifying the need for the government to act and develop a national strategy to combat loneliness. 

Prime Minster Theresa May said: “For far too many people, loneliness is the sad reality of modern life. I want to confront this challenge for our society and for all of us to take action to address the loneliness endured by the elderly, by carers, by those who have lost loved ones – people who have no one to talk to or share their thoughts and experiences with'.

To me this paints a sad picture of the current social trends in our society, ever towards a more nominally independent and individualistic view of the person (these being potentially socially isolating), and away from an interdependent and collaborative societal view. I also think it sad that it is only now that this kind of endemic social isolation has become a serious political issue ... and anyway, loneliness isn't just a social issue: social isolation (resulting in chronic loneliness) can have the same negative health effects as 20 fags a day (Ref: some people on the BBC News website) and look how seriously that physical 'health' issue is now taken by the NHS!

Now I really welcome this move, but I am not sure how aware Mrs May is of the significance of the final part of her statement - because I think that there is in fact a broader issue here about 'people who have no one to talk to or share their thoughts and experiences with' - not for some people because there is no one actually around them (i.e. it being nothing to do with any geographical isolation), but because for some people, their communicative means of sharing 'their thoughts and experiences' isn't acknowledged, isn't shared and isn't responded to by those around them e.g. if the support staff or carers of a person with severe or profound intellectual disabilities and/or autism (or late stage  dementia) aren't proficient in Intensive Interaction.

This point was further reinforced for me later on that same day when I met a young man (for the first time) who has been identified as having some 'behavioural difficulties', but who responded to Intensive Interaction fantastically well (with me as a strange man ('strange' as in not familiar!), and especially so with his CLDT nurse who used Intensive Interaction wonderfully to 'connect' with him). I did then think that this lovely, sociable young man is someone who has the potential to become: 

a) very well socially engaged by those around him (if his support staff or carers are proficient in Intensive Interaction), or ...

b) increasingly socially isolated (and thus chronically lonely, even in the presence of others) if his support staff or carers do not sociably respond to his pre-verbal communications using Intensive Interaction ... and potentially then being driven to gain social attention in more desperate/less socially acceptable ways.

Theresa and Tracey, well done - that's a good start ... but are you ready to listen and think more broadly around this 'loneliness' and 'social isolation' issue?