Is This the Cure for the Loneliness Epidemic?

The Loneliness Epidemic.

In recent years there has been much written about a loneliness epidemic. Deep dives into the how's and whys and ways to overcome it have been documented by universities, doctors, the United States Surgeon General (in 2023), and the World Health Organization.

As humans most of us have experienced loneliness in our lives. Whether it stems from a lack of connection or isolation in our daily lives, it is likely that we all have felt lonely during our lifetimes.

The causes cited are varied and range from social engineering to social media, and from gaps in empathy and connection. The impact is global and affects all cultures, ages, and socio-economic groups. It seems as though there is no one in the world that is immune to loneliness.

I too have felt lonely. During my spiritual awakening I experienced long periods of isolation and a sense that no one could or would understand me and my life. In truth it started long before my awakening process.

My feelings of loneliness started as a child. My abusive family made healthy human connections nearly impossible. I didn’t learn the tools to connect in a meaningful way. I didn’t know how to create deep and meaningful relationships. That was until I met my soul. 

When I first met my soul, I thought it was a beautiful feature of my spiritual awakening. It felt like I was getting to know myself better and experiencing myself in a new way. It felt like an awakening unto myself. And it was, but what I didn’t realize was that my connection with my soul was the cure to my loneliness. 

Since connecting with my soul, I am never alone. Nothing I do is alone. I have my soul with me always. Loving me, supporting me, protecting me, and guiding me. Whatever question I have is answered. And when it is something that I need to figure out on my own, my soul gives me the space to do so.

By creating a connection within myself and with my soul, I was learning to create healthy human connections. I was learning to connect in a deeper way. I was learning to see myself and all beings in a way that saw through the social facade and the mask we wear in the world. I was learning to see souls and see humans more deeply and purely. 

I see now that my spiritual awakening wasn’t about psychic experiences or my spiritual gifts as much as it was about creating a deep and meaningful relationship with myself. The connection with my soul has been the most significant and lasting aspect of my awakening process. My connection with my soul was the making of me.

Maybe that’s what the epidemic of loneliness is trying to teach us. That seeing the social mask isn’t enough. Connecting on the surface isn't enough. We must see and connect with each other more deeply. We must seek the soul level. Maybe loneliness is asking us to shed the social masks and connect and live from our souls. To do that we must first seek to understand ourselves and our souls.

As within so without. To see others, we must see ourselves first. Or rather, we can only see others as deeply as we see ourselves. Which means that we must start with our relationship, our connection, with ourselves and our soul. The good news is that it is easy to do. 

A Relationship with Soul. 

Everyone has a soul. Each of us. Even when it seems someone doesn’t have a soul, they do. They just aren’t connected with it and are likely driven more by ego and the mind. We see those people in our lives and in our news. They always seem so miserable and are likely seeking to do harm to others. 

Instead of living by ego and mind, we can choose to live by our soul. We can create a connection with our soul and learn the language of soul, our intuition. As a result of our soul connection, we are more likely to realize our souls’ purposes. We are more likely to fulfill our purposes. We are more likely to create connections with others at a soul level.

Our connection with our soul is entirely possible. I know because I’ve done it. Connecting with my soul has allowed me to realize and fulfill many of my soul’s purposes. I see the people around me and the people I encounter in my days as souls. Souls having a human experience.

I remember the first time I met my soul. I thought I was having another psychic experience. My intuition guided me to understand that I was meeting my soul. Soon, we were able to create a language to communicate through intuition. From there our relationship has continued to develop and deepen. My relationship with myself has developed and deepened.  

My relationship with my soul has saved me. It has guided me through my awakening process and through the day-to-day minutia. It has guided me forward and helped me create a purposeful and meaningful life. It saved me from loneliness when there was no one else in the world that saw or heard me.

A relationship with our soul is how we move past the loneliness epidemic. Whether it’s because we create a deep and meaningful connection with ourselves, or others. Whether we find purpose and meaning in our lives, or with community. It is our soul that can lead us forward. It is our soul that can guide us to all that we seek.

How to Connect with Our Soul.

After connecting with my soul and fulfilling many of my soul’s purposes, I began writing about how to connect with our souls. They aren’t steps but things that we can do to create a connection with our soul. 

Intention. Setting the intention comes first. Even when we are creating relationships with someone else, we set the intention by thinking, “I’d like to get to know them better.” Our lives are driven by our intentions. That holds true for the intention to connect with our soul. Think of it as an invitation delivered to our soul. We’d like to know ourselves better. We’d like to know our soul or our purposes.

Practice. Whether it’s a spiritual practice or self-care practice, those are times when we are most open and connected with ourselves. They can also be the times we set aside to connect with our soul. A ritual bath or meditation practice can be a doorway to connection. Our fitness activities or mindful practices can be a doorway to our soul connection. The time we spend commuting to work, on a walk, or whatever free time we have. Use those times to repeat our intention and listen inward for a response. Listen for our soul, look for signs. 

Receive. Our souls speak through our intuition. When it does, be ready to receive it. We may hear it, see it, or know it. In whatever way it comes, acknowledge the communication. Acknowledge it with gratitude and encourage the conversation. Set another intention to continue developing the relationship. And continue to listen to what our soul has to say.

Language. Creating a common language is key to relationships. Our intuition is the language of our soul. We can develop our intuitive communication by asking questions. What does a “yes” response feel, look, or sound like? What does a “no” response feel, look, or sound like? Connect inward, bring awareness to what those responses are. If it helps, we can use tools such as tarot cards, automatic writing, or our clair senses. Our soul will know the pathway to our communication. Our intuition will guide us.

Communication. Communication is key to a thriving relationship with our soul as it is within any relationship. We must encourage good communication skills. Mirroring guidance and affirming what we receive are important to understanding communication. Being open to redirection can help to avoid misunderstanding our intuitive communication. Harsh self-talk is harmful to ourselves and our soul and should be avoided. Just as it should be avoided in any relationship.

Connection. Our connection with our soul is like any other relationship. It needs to be invested in, nourished, for it to thrive. It will develop over time with intention and effort. We can identify the needs our soul has and fulfill those needs. Do whatever we can to nourish our soul through connection. Doing so rewards us in ways that fulfill and nourish us at a soul level. 

Trust. Besides communication and connection, we know that trust is an important part of our relationships. It is no different with the relationship with ourselves and our soul. When we ask for and receive guidance, we must trust what comes. If it’s a challenge to trust, take that as an opportunity to heal. We can ask for help trusting the guidance. We can also choose to trust and make that leap of faith.

Guidance. Once we’ve established language, communication, connection, and trust we can ask our soul for guidance. We can ask how to move forward towards our goals. We can ask what our purposes are. We can ask about how to fulfill our purposes. We can ask how to move through our daily minutiae. We can wonder about things and receive guidance. We can ask anything of our soul and receive back guidance. Ask and our souls will guide us forward in a way that is aligned.

When we think of our soul as our inner Divinity we can understand that all is possible in terms of our soul and intuitive guidance. Our soul connection can guide us through anything if we let it. It can even guide us through loneliness. Our soul can provide us with the love, support, protection, and guidance we seek.

A relationship with our soul is like any other relationship. It needs a common language, communication, connection, and trust. With all that in place our soul can guide us anywhere. It can help us heal. It can help us move through life in a way that is purposeful and meaningful. Our soul can guide us towards anything that is aligned with our soul and our Divine life path. It can also bring to fruition our dreams, wishes, purposes, and missions. 

Connecting with my soul was the cure for my loneliness. It didn’t happen immediately. It was a result of developing and deepening my relationship with myself and my soul. It was a process of setting the intention, receiving, trusting, and following the guidance that came through my intuition. 

Over time my relationship with my soul allowed me to learn to love myself. I learned to be with myself and that eased my loneliness. My soul taught me to love, support, protect, and guide myself.

I believe that the meaning of life is love. With that in mind our relationship with our soul is key to loving ourselves. Which is then the basis for loving all others. That expansion of love within us then extending to others may be the cure to the loneliness epidemic. 

Connection and Gratitude. 

Seeking your soul’s purpose, read my Finding Your Soul’s Purpose blog series. It includes connecting with your soul along with other tips for connecting with your purposes. 

Remember to bookmark the Exploring Spirituality main blog page. I invite you to come back Mondays and most Fridays for new posts about spiritual awakening, soul purpose, and other spiritual topics. 

Links to my active social media accounts can be found here. Or you can search for me, Nikki DeForest.

I’m grateful you’re here. I love you. 

Be well, beautiful soul and human,

Nikki