MARION (WSIL)---Being alone and feeling lonely aren't always the same thing.
But feeling lonely can impact your mental health.
"Loneliness does not necessarily cause mental illness, and mental illness does not necessarily cause loneliness, the two of them have a relationship. Because loneliness then becomes this unsolved mental health, emotional problem," said Lorianne Schmider, the Local recovery Coordinator with the Marion VA.Â
Loneliness is extremely common, but rarely talked about.
Research from 2014 found loneliness can be as bad for your health as smoking half a pack of cigarettes a day.
"If they notice that they're extra tense, or if their stomach is bothering them, or their head is bothering them, we know those things exist, it doesn't necessarily mean that person has an ongoing mental illness but mental health is all of it," said Schmider.
This problem is especially prevalent in veterans.
That's why the Marion VA is promoting Loneliness Awareness Week, with their program Compassionate Contact Corps.
"The Compassionate Contact Corps. is a program that is essentially a virtual, social, prescription program which is intended to increase the amount of interaction that our veterans have," said Maria Buehler, the Voluntary Service Officer with the Marion VA.Â
The program connects volunteers and veterans for weekly phone or video calls that help curb loneliness and isolation.
So far they've had around 100 volunteers through the program.
But as the need grows, the program needs more volunteers.
"I truly believe this, we can only help as many veterans as we have volunteers to match them. We have to train them, they have to get on board, so if we can put an invite out into the community, to let them know that there is something they can participate in that can make a difference, then great," said Buehler.Â
For more information on how to volunteer, click
