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Comment by firasd | Hacker News Reader

"Loneliness is distinct from the number of friends a person has or how much time he or she spends alone, but is rather defined by a longing for greater social interaction."

I think this is a good distinction to make. Something I've been realizing from the way I see other people talk about and deal with being alone in situations, is that I have a much higher-than-usual tolerance for solitude. (Maybe a trait shared by others here on HN because of our interests and pastimes?) I'm pretty sure I can be in an isolated place for months at a time. (Of course I'd want the internet, books, music etc... being alone like in The Shining or in solitary confinement is a whole different situation.)

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For me, it's more than just a "tolerance for solitude", I feel I have an occasional active desire for solitude. A few times a year I'll explicitly hide out for the weekend and avoid all outside communication. It's probably one of the reasons I like motorcyling so much - even when I'm out riding with friends, there's a thing a friend of mine calls "shared solitude" when your alone inside your helmet even if you've got 4 or 5 friends along for the ride - I often spend a day "out riding with friends" when really, we just stop and meet up every 2 hours for fuel/food, and spend the rest of our time alone but riding in close proximity.

I agree. Too often we forget that connection is a human thing. We think that snapping funny faces 4 times a day makes us connected but it is the opposite. One thing that I noticed when I started online dating is that it was really easy to get to know things about someone but really hard to get to know them. What really makes them them? It takes human interaction to learn that.

I'd say instead of calling it the opposite of human connection, it's more like a fraction of what human connection is. It's just enough to quell the desire to meet up with people in real life, but it's not enough to make it feel very meaningful.

Air with 0.00002% oxygen isn't technically the "opposite" of breathable air either, but if it fills the lungs ("quells" the space for other air), the effects are the "opposite" of the purpose of breathing.

Same. As long as I have my books, I'm a happy man. I know it's not healthy but I have stayed in my apartment for a few days at a time and not really noticed. Cabin fever catches up eventually and it's always great to see friends though I find I have to slow down sometimes when talking to them.

You're lonely if you have solitude but want social interaction.

It's very easy to enjoy solitude if it's only temporary. If during that period you lose the friends you had, eg moving country, it can be very hard to build up connections again.

Then if you do want social interaction again, suddenly you can't have it and you become lonely.

So don't be too smug about enjoying solitude. Don't lose the important interactions as you never know when you'll need them.

The amount of time involved here matters. Do you enjoy solitude for a week/month/year/decade. Do you want that solitude when you're 80?

Yeah I don't necessarily seek out solitude, just noticing as a personality trait that I'm more OK with it than many other people. I always have something going on whether it's work, personal projects, etc. so I don't mind if, for example, I'm sitting in an office by myself. Whereas others want more of a 'buzz' around them. That kinda thing.

I'm much the same, but I'd say that regular contact with people does have a levelling effect - it's harder for stress to take hold long term, and it provides a distraction from whatever negative internal dialogue you may suffer. Also, the longer you spend not interacting with others, the less practised and potentially more problematic it may become.

I can second your observation. With me though I do like to go out in public/to different locations (e.g. library or park) even if I don't actually interact with people there (whereas being alone in a room for months on end would be quite unpleasant, then again even if there was another person there it would probably still be unpleasant).

I saw a beautifully succinct quote on reddit a few years back: "The difference between loneliness and solitude is a matter of perception."

I don't tolerate solitude, I actively seek it out most of the time.

Maybe it’s because you (we) are looking for it and not undergoing it ?

While some people may seek aloneness, I can't imagine anyone seeking loneliness.

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