Week beginning 30th January 2017 Love your neighbour? Week beginning 30th January 2017

Loneliness Living alone can be a contributing factor to loneliness, and according to the Office for National Statistics, there are more than two million people aged 75 and over living on their own in the UK. Not all of them are lonely, of course, but feeling lonely can have an impact on your mental and physical health. Research suggests that a lack of social interaction could be as bad for you as smoking 15 cigarettes a day

loneliness Many people can feel lonely: Students starting a new school or University Older people who have lost a partner Single parents whose last child has left home Those with mental health problems

How can we help? A number of different initiatives are on offer from various charities looking to keep elderly people connected to the outside world. Befriending schemes can include weekly telephone calls, days out or home visits and often result in unique relationships

Schemes that can help In 2011, Adam Lamb had finished his studies and was searching for somewhere to live in London. Looking to save money, Adam - who was then 26 - went to a home share agency. There he was introduced to Professor Kyla Greenbaum. "I really liked the idea of developing a friendship with someone that needed it," he explains. “She was 89 when I moved in. We just hit it off straight away. She's got the spirit and imagination of an 18-year-old. She regaled me with stories of what it was like to be a teenager in wartime London." Soon the trainee solicitor had become Kyla's lodger. "The friendship is one of the most honest friendships I have. She's like extended family now.“ Adam lived with Kyla for four years. He still sees her on a weekly basis and they will be spending Christmas together this year.

What can we do? Here is an example of how one young person decided to get to know his neighbours – by simply knocking on their doors and chatting to them. https://www.truetube.co.uk/film/i-want-know-my-neighbours

To reflect…or pray Who can we speak to? Who can we visit? Who can we phone? Who can we help feel a little bit less lonely this week? ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself’