Johanna enjoys being alone. She likes to watch television or read a book when she leaves her job. She arrives at her house, secures the door, prepares the lunch and goes to rest.
On weekends he avoids going out, although sometimes he gets together with friends and on other occasions he invents a pretext. “That’s what my weekends are for me. I listen to music, I go shopping. I don’t feel bad; I like loneliness”, says the 28-year-old.
Johanna experiences a desired loneliness, the one with which she feels complete and identified. However, there is loneliness not desired. It is produced when people do not have the expected quality of social relationships.
‘I live with pain the 24 hours of the day’: Nathalie Viteri, sister of mayor of Guayaquil, reveals details of her cruel illness
This solitude is contextual, according to psychologist and professor at the Casa Grande University, Diana Donoso. “This loneliness is what causes discomfort and pain. There is a fear of being alone and the person is facing their fears, experiences and emotional problems”, says Donoso, who adds that the causes are multiple, such as depression due to the loss of a family member or anxiety caused by a breakup in love.
With this concuerda Carlos Pérez, clinical psychologist and president of the Sociedad Ecuatoriana de Psicología en Emergencias and it signals that loneliness is a state of mind generated by a symptomatology.
“How is depression, in that sense, the fear of abandonment can be taken as part of personality traits. It can also be seen in some contexts such as in the disorders where they feel that they must conserve a persona and generate a dependency and have no fear of abandonment and feel alone”, explains Pérez.
And this is mixed with uncertainty, points out the doctor in clinical psychology, Samuel Merlanowhich also means that other scenarios that lead to an undesired loneliness could be a traffic accident.
“It is a traumatic experience, of mucho pain. Spends all the time crying and the person feels distressed. He feels very uncertain about the future of life, so this loneliness is very aggressive and who require psychological help since you feel you can’t do more with loneliness”, assures the expert.
In Ecuador there is no precise scientific analysis of loneliness. However, in countries like Spain, women are more exposed to this state of mind, according to a 40dB social study published by El País newspaper.
In addition, Young people under 24 years old feel more lonely y represents 36.9%; followed by people between 25 and 35 years old with 32.9% and older than 64 years old with 12.9%.
What does the draft Mental Health Law that is being processed by the National Assembly consist of?
This loneliness is also very felt by the people who are unemployed, which represent 33%; them students, con el 27.4%; and workers, with 22.1%. All these people dedicate bad hours to social networks.
The reality of the European country shown in the studio is not far from Ecuador, says it clinical psychologist Paola Córdova, who explains that, if this loneliness was seen earlier in women, there are also cases in men. “There has been an increase in consultations for adults (men) and children”, she says.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/eluniverso/VK72LQLMMBGXLHPLLUKPJWXHTE.jpg)
“If you see more in adolescence, that’s where you get more marks”, says and adds that this can be very varied: “I have children aged 8, 9 and 10 who prefer to escape in their loneliness and not communicating what is going on to their parents as a way of alerting them and doing something”.
For Donoso, these are evolutionary moments that must be faced. “For teenagers, having friends is the most important part of their lives because they start interacting with other people beyond their homes. Older adults can suffer abandonment from the family and face loneliness”, explains Donoso.
The budget allocated for mental health in the country is only 2%according to data from the Comisión del Derecho a la Salud y Deporte de la Asamblea Nacional. And in the area of psychology there is a record of 1,550 professionals in 2020, details the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC). More than 80% is in the public sector.
Experts indicate that, during the pandemic, consultations have risen due to anxiety and depression, which is why this unwanted loneliness was generated. Currently, we receive patients with these diagnoses, whose sessions are one hour long and the treatment can last for days or a few years. If the case is more complex and requires medication, go to a psychiatrist.
The costs of each consultation vary, according to each specialist. There are quotes at $25, $30, $40, $50, $60 and up to $80. However, there are also free options for those who have a problem and don’t have resources.
Orgaepsi is a non-profit institution that provides free psychological attention Monday to Friday from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm and weekends from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm. This help is virtual.
Iván Villarreal, holder of Orgaepsisays that any person can enter the www.orgaepsi.com, click on ´Virtual Hospital´ and enter a Zoom room. Decir sus personal data about him and continue to quote.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/eluniverso/O43UX66TFJFYHMAZ7PSSJT7NEA.jpg)
“We have seen that the majority of cases refer to mild and moderate symptoms, which do not jeopardize the life of the person. Anxiety, stress, problems of a love breakup have been seen. Also the psycho-eating disorder when a person who got so bad just stops eating”, explains Villarreal.
For that reason Merlano clarifies that the sessions are not regular, it is to say, that they are not the same for everyone, but there is a great concentration in emotions. “During that time the patient will begin to redefine his life and work on all his emotions and it should be emphasized that not everyone who lives in solitude is feeling the same. At that moment psychological and emotional tools are given so that its positive part is flourishing until it is discharged”, comments Merlano.
List report on a project that establishes mental health as a public health problem and obliges the State to prevent and guarantee its attention
Pérez, for example, uses a cognitive-behavioral, rational-emotive, cognitive restructuring and behavioral activation therapy.
“These are going to manage the issue of beliefs of how human beings use in the first part the thought before the behavior. All of this is due to a thought that can be present in the person who is being distorted and who is having to suffer because the fear is not always the fear of losing someone who leads him to the loneliness that can do harm. Many people with obsessive compulsive disorders, which generate isolation, fear that something could happen”, argues Pérez.
Córdova advises people who are going through this situation to go to a specialist to help them find themselves again. “Understanding that time with one self is something wonderful. Once a relationship ends, it breaks down and the reconstruction is achieved with therapeutic help and decides: ‘I’m dueling everything that’s dueling me and I’m going to do my dueling process and I’m going to love it every minute because I’m going to come out stronger’. Hay que vivir el día a día without going back because it generates us much depression and without going much into the future because it generates anxiety”, points out. (I)
