Can solitude be dangerous?

[meow_meow]

Truth seeking is quite a lonely road, over time friends become more and more distant and eventually tend to fall off, it's a lot more harder to naturally fit in mainstream culture, family members die or some of us don't even have families and friends. This leads to aloneness and for most people - feelings of loneliness.

So I was hoping you guys are going to help me understand the following things:

- How lack of physical face-to-face communication with other humans affect the psyche of an individual?
- Does it have any effect on the body? (health)
- Can interaction with others via online like social media, forums, video games etc fully replace social needs to an extent that it could become the only form of interaction with others without causing any health problems? (mental and physical)

EDIT: WHAT NEGATIVE EFFECTS CAN LONG PERIODS OF SOLITUDE HAVE ON HEALTH?

Edited May 2, 2021 by meow_meow

[Leo Gura]

Yes, it can be dangerous if you spiral downward into madness by yourself.

But don't forget, being social can be very dangerous as you spiral downward into collective madness.

People. You're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

It is what you make of it. Welcome to life.

[charlie cho]

i think when you spiral downward into a madness by yourself in solitude, people tend to harm themselves and become masochistic if they are not careful, while others who spiral downward into madness with the collective, they tend to harm others who are not like them and become sadistic. Both masochism and sadism is inadvisable. It's not about being alone nor being with many people. It's all about who you are. Who are you?

What I would add here is this. People who are supposedly enlightened in my eyes do not make a show of being the only truth knower around their social group. It is not to say they join in with the sheep-like mentality that society has which tends to hurt people with selfishness. They are in the marketplace, they have friends, but they only participate with their social group when there is a positive vibration within it. As soon as they see something fucked up happen in the marketplace, business, school, etc they just avoid and go away without speaking. They either try to remedy the situation quietly or simply avoid it all together. All in all, they raise the vibe no matter what by either staying with people or avoiding people. 

There are two paths I heard. These paths can be explicitly demonstrated by two of the most well known truth seekers in history: Buddha and Jesus. Buddha chose to be more alone and not be involved with politics. Jesus was very much with people and was involved with politics of Jerusalem, angering even the leaders of the state. Both are viable as Truth seeking and none is better than the other. 

Who are you? Take an MBTI test and see if you are an extrovert or an introvert. Extroverted people gain energy being with people. Introverted people lose energy being with people. Everyone is different, so I don't think one should be alone or one should be with people when one is seeking Truth. 

Edited May 1, 2021 by charlie cho

[blackchair]

you get used to it....its not a big deal....

[Superfluo]

@meow_meow

1) It depends on your psyche, how much it is sensitive to stimuli. For example introverts I think have a more sensitive psyche to stimuli than extroverts, so they perform better in quiet environments. If you're more sensitive, you'll need social interactions in smaller quantities and less often, so you'll have a bigger threshold for lack of social needs.

2) Everything has an effect on the body. The issue is: to what degree? This depends on various factors like being sedentary or not, being very emotional or not, social circumstances, social obligations, stage of life, etc.

3) No. Being touched, for example, is something we need biologically and psychologically.

 

[meow_meow]

@Superfluo Ok, lets assume that I'm a very extroverted person that wants to be around people, what will extended periods of solitude do to my psyche and body?
 

28 minutes ago, Superfluo said:

3) No. Being touched, for example, is something we need biologically and psychologically

And what happens if I won't get touched by anyone?

[SolarWarden]

Hello cat friend

When we are around people we get a sense of separetness from them. So it is a good idea to retreat into solitude and to connect with oneness so not to feel alone and vice versa. Just find a balance between the two for yourself.

 

[Batman]

Get a cat

[meow_meow]

16 hours ago, SolarWarden said:

Hello cat friend

When we are around people we get a sense of separetness from them. So it is a good idea to retreat into solitude and to connect with oneness so not to feel alone and vice versa. Just find a balance between the two for yourself.

 

Meow, 

They worshiped us centuries back in ancient egypt and look how they treat us now. Our time will come, brother.

Anyway, the info that I'm trying to find out here is:

How long can one stay in solitude for it to be considered healthy?
And how long is not healthy?
What negative side effects can solitude have on health?

[Rajneeshpuram]

Yo can never be alone unless you live in a isolation chamber. For example if you live alone inawoods yo are with nature, plants, animals... thats a way healthier environment than living in a sick society

[EmptyInside]

I found this insightful to hear how different types of people handle solitude. A few of them definitely resonated with me.

Spiraling into madness is always a possibility I would imagine. Not just with solitude, but any spiritual practice. Try talking with the ER at your local hospital about a spiritual awakening or profound spiritual insights. I live in solitude out in nature. It's a very simple life and it's right where i want to be most of the time. I do feel very connected with nature. I crave more human connection sometimes. I'm not a gamer, I don't care for social media. I watch a lot of YouTube videos. Mostly small talk without much depth from most of my friends irl with one or two exceptions. Maybe that's on me for judging them. This forum is a good place to connect. I've found a few other forums too that also create some sense of connection. I know there are plenty of others on this forum who live in solitude. It would be nice to hear from some of them. You can experience solitude in the middle of Las Vegas or in the middle of a corn field. You can feel lonely and isolated surrounded by people or all by yourself.