Loneliness Awareness Week 2025 – 10 tips to help with loneliness

Everybody feels lonely from time to time. Loneliness is a natural human emotion which can – and does – affect anyone, of any age.

As humans, we need social contact with others and feeling lonely might be a sign that you need more. However, it’s important to remember that loneliness can still occur when you have lots of social contact – you may feel misunderstood or uncared for by people around you.  

Although loneliness itself isn’t a mental health problem, it can lead to both mental and physical health issues in the long-term. So, learning to recognise when we feel lonely and taking steps to improve how we feel is vital to looking after our wellbeing.

To mark Loneliness Awareness Week 2025, we are sharing some ideas of things you can do if you are feeling lonely.

Top 10 tips to help with loneliness

• Acknowledge how you feel – Experiencing loneliness shouldn’t be something to feel embarrassed about. Accepting that it is a normal human emotion is a great starting point to feeling better.

• Talk to someone about it – Friends and family might not realise you are feeling lonely. Opening up about how you feel might seem intimidating, but can be the most helpful step to take. If you are experiencing long-term loneliness, contact your GP to ensure you are getting the right support.

• Create ‘micro-connections’– Grab every chance to smile, wave, or begin a conversation with others – for instance, with the cashier at the shop or a neighbour across the street. These small moments of interaction with acquaintances or even strangers can help us to feel seen and give us a sense of belonging.

• Invite friends for tea – If you’re feeling down and alone, it’s tempting to think nobody wants to visit you. But often friends, family and neighbours will appreciate receiving an invitation to come and spend some time with you.

• Keep in touch by phone – Having a chat with a friend or relative over the phone can be the next best thing to being with them.

• Get involved in local community activities – These will vary according to where you live, but the chances are you’ll have access to a singing or walking group, book clubs, bridge, bingo, quiz nights and faith groups. Why not look for a local Men’s Shed in your area?

• Learn to love computers – If your friends and family live far away, a good way to stay in touch is by using a computer or tablet. Libraries and community centres often hold regular training courses to learn basic computer skills – as well as being a good place to meet and spend time with others in their own right.

• Fill your diary – It can help you feel less lonely if you plan the week ahead and put things in your diary to look forward to each day, such as a walk in the park or going to a local coffee shop, library, sports centre or cinema.

• Get out and about – Don’t wait for people to come and see you, travel to visit them.

• Help others – Charities often need volunteers to help in all sorts of roles. You could use the knowledge and experience you have gained to give something back to your community.

Everyone experiences loneliness differently, and what helps one person may not work for another. For example, maybe you find social media overwhelming, or maybe being part of online forums helps you connect to like-minded people. The most important thing is finding what works for you.

Useful resources

If you are in crisis or distress, please remember that Lifeline operates 24/7– you can call them and talk to a trained counsellor on: 0808 808 8000.

The Samaritans can also be contacted 24/7 by calling: 116 123.

For young people, Papyrus operate HOPELINE247 at: 0800 068 41 41.

Contact Childline on: 0800 1111.