Who are lonely men? Why do men get lonely? Why is it hard for adult men to make friends who are not their family members? Why can’t most men keep friends? Why do I have a hard time making friends? Why can’t I make friends? I feel like no one likes me.
These are just some of the questions most men struggle with. If any of these statements sound familiar or you are interested in learning more about lonely men, this article has the answers you seek.
Hi. My name is Sean Galla, a facilitator for men’s groups and support groups. In my line of work, I create a platform where lonely men can meet other men in a safe environment that makes it easy to develop platonic friendships and an emotional connection. I have seen firsthand how important it is for every man to have friends.
If you are interested in joining an emotional support social circle or like-minded men, learn how to make friends, and learning about male loneliness, this article is for you.
In this article, you will learn everything you need to know about lonely men, making friends, and why it is beneficial to a man.
Table of Contents:
Who are lonely men?
Male Loneliness has become a common topic discussed whenever people talk about men’s mental health, bromance and social life. According to statistics, there are more lonely men than women in the world. This is because most single men and even middle-aged men struggle with making meaningful friendships or keeping them. Moat men lead a lonely life as they try to fit into society’s expectations of a man.
While most people expect lonely men to lead isolated lives, sometimes lonely men can be middle age men with tons of friends and loved ones.
A lonely man can be defined as a man who is unaware of how to open up to people on a deeper level. They are also men who lead life alone or bottle up their thoughts and feelings for fear of being misunderstood. Lonely men often experience an overwhelming feeling of isolation, even when they are amongst people. Most times, lonely men find trying to obtain a social connection exhausting, causing them to retreat into loneliness.
this article looks into why men feel lonely and how to fix it.
Understanding loneliness in men
Going by statistics, including this Study that explores loneliness among men in the COVID-19 pandemic, one in every three men experiences loneliness. This rise comes with increased cases of male suicides and mental health issues.
Male loneliness is the feeling of being alone and the need to isolate yourself from the world. Men with male friends can also experience male loneliness.
Loneliness is a state of discomfort or distress that occurs due to a gap between a man’s desire for a social connection and experiencing this connection. Loneliness is a state of mind. Therefore, one does not have to be physically alone or without friends to feel lonely.
Lonely males crave friendships that go deeper than general male bunter over sports or work. However, most men do not know how to approach fellow men to foster these friendships. Male loneliness is a leading cause of men’s health issues, including heart disease and obesity in older men and men in different age groups. Loneliness can cause depression, anxiety, and lethargy.
Common attributes of lonely men
Sometimes, identifying whether you are a lonely man is not easy since people show different symptoms.
There are a lot of similarities between symptoms exhibited by someone suffering from depression and one suffering from loneliness. Some of the symptoms that can tell if you are experiencing male loneliness include:
- Inability to connect with fellow men or others on a deeper level
- Not having close friends or best friends
- An Overwhelming feeling of isolation even when around other people
- Feelings of self-doubt and low self-worth/self-esteem
- Not being heard or turned away when you speak up
- Exhaustion and burnout when you try to engage with others socially
Causes of loneliness in men
Many reasons can cause male loneliness, especially amongst adults. To be able to understand why you are lonely, you first need to identify common patterns that may be hindering you from making a social connection, or at least meaningful ones.
Suffering from social anxiety is also a common cause of social isolation for not having close friends. Shyness and autism syndromes like Asperger’s, bipolar disorder, depression, and physical disabilities are also leading causes of the increasing number of lonely men in America. Some people suffer from untreated mental trauma or have suffered betrayal from old friends, making it hard for them to trust people.
Men do not like expressing their feelings
Common phrases like ‘man up’ communicate the idea that a man’s masculinity can be lost if they start being vocal about their feelings. Most men suffer from chronic loneliness because they fear admitting their true feelings, even when things are going wrong.
Men avoid showing weakness
Society expects men to be stoic and strong, often associated with bottling up emotions and not expressing their feelings. This is why masculinity is related to toxic masculinity behaviors like dominance and misogynistic gender roles. Because of this upbringing, most men do not believe in having close friendships, which leaves them feeling lonely.
Men lack bonding opportunities
For centuries, men have lacked safe spaces where they can be experience social contact, bond with fellow men, and foster meaningful friendships and get a sense of camaraderie. This lack of bonding opportunities forces men to lead a lonely life since they lack the avenue to approach fellow men. It is only recently that support groups for men like MensGroup have become acceptable and more available. Through these men’s groups, men bond, meet fellow men and talk about different issues affecting their day-to-day lives, family, work, and social stuff in a safe space.
How lonely men can overcome loneliness
The number one cause of lonely men is their inability to make in-depth friendships. The only way to beat the epidemic of isolation among young men is to educate men on the benefits of having friends.
If you are considering making friends as a lonely man, the worst thing you can do is decide to go out and make close friends without learning how to do so effectively.
Choose friends with similar interests
Finding common interests with your new friends is one of the most challenging parts of building friendships. To make it easy, you can ask questions about their hobbies, interests, and life during a meetup. If you are not sure about what you like, you can pursue hobbies that put you in the way of meeting new people. Some people have met their best friends by taking a chance.
Most men are interested in hobbies that include bike polo, video gaming, sports, rock climbing, hiking, religious events, and volunteering.
Embrace bromance
While this may seem straightforward, a good number of men do not know how to relax and have fun. To build ideal male friendships, you need to be able to have fun with them and enjoy the friendship journey. See a movie, show off your sense of humor, go out for a drink or sit and relax together, do whatever it takes to have fun with your friends.
Be open to showing vulnerability
One of the best ways to develop a strong bond with your new friends is to allow yourself to be vulnerable.
Allowing yourself to be vulnerable makes it easier for your friends to open up to you, too, and makes it easier to start conversations about male emotions, mental health, and self-development.
Pick the right social network
Even as you strive to make best friends, it is important to make meaningful male friendships. A good friend is someone who helps you to grow and learn and vice versa. Your ideal friend should add value to your life as you add value to theirs.
While a good sense of humor is good, your new friends should accept you for you and help you build your self-esteem to become the man you wish to be. Best friends hold each other accountable by caring about one another’s self-development.
It is also important to take your time to know whom you can or cannot trust. It is important to ensure you only allow genuine and honest men into your friend zone or social circle. This will ensure you can be vulnerable and honest without fear of judgment or ridicule from your friends.
Join a lonely men support group
Sometimes, the easiest way to make close male friendships as a man is by joining a men’s friends group on social media or online. Joining a friends group like mensgroup.com ensures you build friendships that meet your needs from the start.
Men’s forums ensure you meet like-minded men who share your interests, ideas, and plans.
About Mensgroup
Men’s Group is a self-improvement community for guys. We create and facilitate conversations between guys who are interested in personal growth. a big part of our group focusses on creating discussions and friendships through our thriving forums, drop-in groups, and online men’s groups that help guys grow and give them the social time they want.
Men’s Group is an online-based support group and forum that focuses on men and the needs of a lot of men. It offers a platform where men from different parts of the world get together to discuss everyday real men issues that affect men’s well-being.
As an online group, the meetup takes place online through video calls or chat. This allows every male to make good friends, even when they run a busy schedule. Especially in this pandemic. It is open to all men from any part of the world, including New York.
Conclusion
If you want to stop being a lonely man and overcome the feeling of loneliness, you need to be willing to put in the work to cultivate new friendships and make them what you want them to be. Join a lonely men support group to increase your chances of making new male friends and overcome loneliness.
Mensgroup is one of the best places to come face-to-face with former lonely men whom you share common interests, goals, and ideas.
*Sources: 1. Why Men Feel Lonely And How To Fix It 2. Study explores loneliness among men in the COVID-19 pandemic 3. Single men are suffering most from loneliness right now 4. The Pandemic of Male Loneliness 5. 5 Reasons Men Are So Devastatingly Lonely 6. Why Am I Lonely? Possible Answers And Solutions 7. The Epidemic of Isolation Among Young Men
