Here’s something I hear every single year around this time: “Maxx, I’m never alone, so why do I feel so lonely?”
Because loneliness isn’t about how many people are in the room. It’s about whether anybody in that room actually knows what’s going on with you.
And right now, a lot of us are carrying more than we’re saying. The American Psychological Association’s recent Stress in America research found that more than half of U.S. adults feel isolated or left out, and nearly seven in ten said they needed more emotional support than they actually got. Add in rising grocery bills, a heated election season, and a calendar that’s about to fill up with obligations, and it makes sense that so many people feel unseen.
Why it hits harder between now and New Year’s
The holidays put connection on a stage. Everybody’s posting the matching pajamas and the full table. If your reality looks different (a divorce, an empty chair, a family you can’t be around, or a marriage that feels like roommates), the contrast can feel brutal.
The days are getting shorter, too. The clocks fall back on Sunday, November 1, and those darker evenings have a way of making quiet loneliness louder.
Three things you can do this week
- Tell one person the real answer. Next time someone asks how you’re doing, skip “fine.” Pick one safe person and give them the honest version.
- Make one plan you control. Don’t wait for an invitation. A standing Sunday phone call, a Friday walk, a coffee with the coworker you like. Small and repeatable beats big and rare.
- Stop scrolling other people’s holidays. Mute the accounts that make you feel behind. That’s not bitterness, that’s boundaries.
Loneliness is information, not a flaw
Feeling lonely doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It means a real need isn’t being met. That’s something a coach can help you work through, gently and without judgment.
You don’t have to figure this out alone
Book a free discovery call with a Life Coaching Today coach: Find a Coach. If you’re in crisis, call or text 988 any time.
📕 Red Flags: A Woman’s Survival Guide to Dating in the Manosphere by Georgia Ann Hunter Jones and Kiddada Asmara Grey. Get your copy here.
Just Ask Maxx is a Master Relationship Coach, Master Hypnotherapist, Certified NLP Practitioner and Certified Divorce Mediator with Life Coaching Today. Email justaskmaxx@gmail.com or call 215-888-5362.
