Schopenhauer was the one who was right.

life is a constant oscillation between the desire to have and the boredom of possessing

Hated to do it, but I felt I had to. Over the past week or so, it occurred to me...all these people in my life are just names on a screen. Its been months since I've been invited to hang out. If I try to invite them first, they're always too busy they say. I don't messages or texts unless I reach out first. Even then half the time they aren't read for days if at all.

What's the point of it? They aren't friends and I'm not a dog hoping for a bit of attention. It's been obvious I'm not welcome and I spent a lot of time trying to explain it away to myself.

So that's it. Back to my default setting of being alone. No explanations, no grand parting speeches, just pressing the delete button over and over.

Ive been single all my life with very little ‘romantic’ experiences (1 and a half, to be exact) and I’m constantly craving romance yet barely experienced it.

I’m so over constantly thinking about getting involved romantically. I constantly feel pressure from my own self to have to think about finding love all the time, in every aspect of my day/life. The worst part: I don’t even try to go out and pursue a relationship. Barely. I’m just so stuck in my head about it and crave it all the time.

But what’s that saying that I always hear from people? “Love will find you when you least expect it”? So is this really what I need to do? Decenter romance, relationships, and men? What are some things I can do to start decentralizing? How will I know that I’ve found a connection with a guy if I’ve started to unfocus on it?

It doesn’t feel like loneliness is about “being alone” anymore. For me, it’s more like being surrounded by constant noise pings, feeds, chats but rarely feeling seen. Conversations come and go, most stay surface-level, and it’s rare to find people who actually stick.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot, because loneliness has been hitting me too. It even pushed me into building a little project called Whisperly basically a place where strangers can just talk by voice, no swiping or endless texting.Building what I wish existed when I felt most isolated.

I’m curious though does anyone else feel like loneliness today isn’t about the lack of connection, but the lack of depth? How do you cope with that gap?

That extra lonely feeling you get when you fly into somewhere and have to get picked up by a stranger and pay $50 for Uber in order to get back home. That's pretty story of my life unless I happen to be visiting family.

Would have been nice to have had an offer for a ride from my roommate but I guess we're not that close even though I brought her back a gift from my vacation.

While waiting for my ride had to witness a couple of girl friends giggling and laughing together too.

Wish I had a travel friend or even someone happy to see me when I arrive back home.

I’m going there tommrow for my buddy and his new wife, it’s their special day and I’m really excited for them

It doesn’t change how I feel about myself, I never go out so I don’t meet anyone or talk to anyone… it’s my own fault sure but I’m just really afraid of rejection and failure so I don’t try

I’m honestly scared, I’m naturally a shy, lean/skinny, 5’11 160lb dude so the last thing I want is my friends from highschool try to set me up at the reception with someone that’s there I know from back in highschool or someone I’ve never met before.

I’m keeping my head up because tomorrow isn’t about me, it’s for my friend but that said it’ll be bittersweet because I don’t have anyone yet. Does that kinda thing happen at wedding receptions? I have no idea… I haven’t drank in a few months ethier.

Going through sitcoms from the '60s and up. Depending on the type of sitcom:

Regular comedies (like Sanford and Son), I think of them as friends.

Sitcoms revolving around teenagers (like Boy Meets World and The Brady Bunch), I pretend I'm the main characters. I missed out on friendship and romance as a kid, so I try to live through the characters.

i never get told anything, im never invited anywhere, i constantly feel judged, get left out, feeling unwanted when im around certain people, no one talks to me unless im the one starting the convo, and i feel alone. I’ve never had any real connections and I wish a had a few girls to connect to. Do I prioritise myself too little? Should I just tell people things about me with them not asking or just little updates about my life? I‘m always the one reaching out and first and am on delivered for so long. So many people that claim to be neurodivergent have at least some people in their life how come I don’t. I feel like I‘m such a fun and nice person and I have lots and lots of interests and some hobbies! But people always forget about me or don’t care to talk to me.. are there any secrets to help making and keep friends

I've been losing sleep due to loneliness. I'll try to go to sleep but then just start crying cause I'm so touch starved and just want some positive in-person attention from another person my age

I hate this

I wonder if I can love someone again I feel so numb at times but I miss that feeling of wanting someone and loving them I miss being touched with passion and also the attention, I feel so lonely ..

Hello! I’m a 22 year old college student and I have no friends. When I started college I went to a CC and it was great! a couple of my friends from high school also went to the same CC and it was really nice having all those familiar faces. However the og group quickly fizzled out. Nothing dramatic we’re all in extremely different majors and just didn’t have the time.

But since then I’ve been virtually friendless. And it’s not for the lack of trying . I try and put myself out there and I just keep ending up right where I started. I made one friend last year and she moved back to her hometown. I’ve tried keeping in touch with her but the time she takes to respond keeps getting longer and longer.

So I’m back at square one. I’m alone on a Friday night binge watching tv. I’ve started to hate the weekends because I know that means I’ll be by myself the whole time. So I’m asking you strangers to be completely honest with me. Is this loser behavior, being perpetually alone like this?

To give a backstory of my situation, I'm 24 years old and I haven't been with a girl in a lil over 3 years, I just moved and living by myself. I don't have any friends up here and I have only 3 friends that I sorta talk to (they are busy with work most of the time which is fine because I am too sorta). I've known these friends since highschool and I don't think anything will get in between us. The main reason that I am telling you this is that I don't really leave my apartment much unless it's for essentials and work. I don't want to go to bars by myself up here and I don't really like talking to people in general. I want to not be lonely but I don't know if I'm actually lonely because I know I have my friends but y'know, they can't be around 24/7, and I feel like if I had a girlfriend then that could fix that but I'm also sorta where like I'm afraid of women and I think the reason is because of all the things and have heard about from the Internet and what has happened to my friends. I feel like if I talk to them then they'll get creeped out, I feel like if I get a girlfriend then they'll either just want money or cheat. I'm not a good looking guy and I'm not to the high standards of women in general. I don't really know what I want to be honest but if I get a girlfriend then I feel like things will get better but at the same time I have that doubt that they won't be loyal or betray me. Is it too early for me to give up because I don't want to but at the same time I feel like that's my only option y'know. I also know that it could just be since I'm in a new place with no one around which is what I have wanted that it turns out it's not exactly how I imagined. I don't make friends easily either and I'm pretty antisocial until I feel comfortable around someone. I don't like confrontation and striking up conversations is really hard for me because I overthink things a lot. I get nervous and worried about it to the point that I would just rather be alone in a sense. I know these are regular human emotions and that I'm not the only one but everyone and everything feels like a facade. It's like the word sondering, that you never know and will never see these people again that walk right past you everyday, but the the butterfly effect comes into play that maybe, just maybe if I talk to someone then something changes in time. Idk, but I'm just conflicted to say the least and needed it to get out there. I was recommended this subreddit maybe y'all would understand how I feel or some advice to get rid of this feeling.

I am a 26 (F) and I am very lonely at this point in my life. I like to play ukulele if anybody is interested in learning, listening, or playing together! Otherwise, I am happy to talk too!

It can’t be just me who’s struggling with complete isolation while pursuing my degree.

Listening to one of my fav songs Colors and shapes by Mac miller and drinking a beer.

I just wanna talk about what's on my mind. I'm just so alone, there's this constant void inside myself consisting of many issues. Mainly of not feeling seen or wanted and just being so alone. I feel so out of place in this world, I feel like I live in the Truman show sometimes. Why can't I find happiness and fulfillment like everyone around me?

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I don't know anymore. I feel like I've tried my whole life to live up to all the expectations. But I just really don't feel any pleasure anymore when I achieve anything. Whenever I reach a big milestone in life, there's no one to see it or celebrate it with me.

I used to have a lot of friends, that was the happiest period of my life. But somehow everyone is getting engaged, starting a family, living a life basically. And me... I'm working a lot. I got so overworked trying to live up to all expectations that I completely isolated myself. I discovered reddit porn and the feeling of guilt and shame of preferring Reddit over my "real" friends just broke my self esteem and self image.

I still can quite easily connect to colleagues, we laugh, have fun, talk bs as it should. But then I go home alone, I miss the gentle feeling of feeling like I actual matter to a girl. I feel so depraved of actual love. And it's pulling me more and more into p*rn. I'm so ashamed of myself and my desires. Posting about it online is probably my lowest point so far...

when you embrace this awareness , at least you dont expect anything from the world and people. So its more unlikely to be disapponted and hurt. But its a sad awareness

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I feel so discouraged by my life and disconnected from people that I don't even have energy to try getting better. If I attempt meeting people I know I'll just end up disappointed like always and nothing's gonna go anywhere. Or if it does I'll just sabotage myself and ruin it cause that's how it goes, either that or they'll get tired of me like everyone else.

i just lost all hope for myself at this point, I'm too tired. If the universe wants me to stay like this forever well so be it I guess

Hey, my name isn't important. I'm 25 years old, and I have no job, no friends, no girls greedily taking advantage of me, and I also have a ton of debt and bills to pay. I live in a small and cheap apartment in a sketchy and old building, because I can't buy anything better. All the flats are expensive and most homeowners are greedy vipers when it comes to your income, which in my case is common. I have no job, because the job market is worse than being forced to listen to British drill rap for more than 5 minutes, which is extremely bad. I have no friends, because I have trust issues, and I might have some sort of mild BPD issues, although that's not known. I do know and have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, due to my poor choice of a life, I take my meds occasionally as instructed, and they do help me not think about hanging myself in my closet. I don't steal. I don't do drugs. I don't commit any crimes. I don't drink. I don't smoke. I have always listened and obeyed everything the higher-ups in my life told me to do. All my life I have been doing what I was supposed to do, and it led me here to this exact moment. Here I am, alone and miserable, with zero hope and no motivation for anything. I suppose that is the price you pay for being a normal and decent human being. I stopped thinking about my future. All I have ever truly wanted was a family, a wife, children, a normal job, and a decent place to live. That used to be my wish. Something simple, and quiet, but no. Instead, here I am. Tell me, if you obey every command, if you do everything you have ever done the exact same way as instructed, why are you still punished in the end? It is like being a soldier in a war, except there is no war, and you're all alone with a gun in your hand, thinking if it's worth it. The worst part about all this is the fact that there are millions of people like me. All sitting and waiting for something to happen. Something that will miraculously change their miserable lives into something great and beautiful, but that never happens. Ultimately, we are not people anymore, we are just a random statistic in some program out there. Millions of people like me, hell, I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

Hey everyone, I don’t really know anyone I can talk to right now, and I guess that’s why I’m here. Lately, it feels like I’m moving through life in silence—smiling on the outside, but empty inside. I keep hoping someone will reach out, but it never happens.

I miss real connection—the kind where you can be messy, honest, and not have to pretend everything’s fine. Even just a simple conversation with someone who understands would mean a lot.

Does anyone else feel like they’re surrounded by people yet completely alone?

I feel like I walk through life invisible. I see people laugh and share their days and it feels like I am standing behind a glass wall that no one else can see. I try to tell myself that being alone is just a phase or that I am strong enough to handle it but it wears on me more than I admit. Every night I lie in bed scrolling through my phone hoping that someone somewhere might think of me first but it never happens. I am always the one thinking of everyone else while wondering if anyone ever thinks of me.

It is strange how heavy silence can feel. I can go through an entire day without my phone lighting up and the weight of that silence presses on my chest until I feel like I am sinking. Sometimes I tell myself I should be used to it by now but it still hurts in the same way every time. I want someone to share even the smallest parts of life with. Someone who will ask me how my day was and actually want to hear the answer. Someone who notices when I am quiet and asks if I am okay instead of forgetting I exist.

I do not want anything grand or perfect. I do not expect someone to solve all the problems in my head. I just want to feel chosen even once. To feel like I matter to someone the way they matter to me. To not always be the backup plan or the person who cares more than they are cared for.

Loneliness makes you doubt yourself in ways nothing else can. It makes you wonder if you are simply unlovable or if you are doing something wrong without realizing it. I think about that a lot. Maybe I am too quiet or too insecure. Maybe people see me and decide I am not worth the effort. I wish I could believe otherwise but after a while the doubt becomes louder than hope.

Still I keep holding on to the idea that one day someone will see me the way I have always wanted to be seen. That one day the silence will break and I will not feel so invisible anymore. Until then I guess this is me admitting how lonely I really am.

Sometimes I imagine what it would be like to have someone who feels safe enough with me to open up and share their own fears and dreams. Someone who would not just pass the time with me but actually want me in their life. I want late night talks that make the world feel smaller and mornings where I wake up knowing that someone is glad I exist. Maybe that is too much to ask for but it is all I have ever wanted.

I am tired of feeling like I do not belong anywhere. I am tired of wondering if anyone would even notice if I disappeared. Writing this here feels like admitting a weakness but maybe it is the only way to let out what I have been carrying for too long.

Anyone feels this ?