Lost Connections with Brittany Days

Brittany Days, a therapist along with a career & life coach with Brighter Days Wellness, appeared on the Book Insights podcast to discuss Lost Connections by Johann Hari. Here are some of her insights:

"A lot of my clients were suffering from loneliness and social disconnection because, with the pandemic, they weren't able to go to their jobs and get the face to face to face interactions they were used to."

"One of the very first questions I ask in my intake sessions is 'Who is in your support system?' and a lot of the time it's 'No one.'... A lot of times people don't have a support system."

"I work with my clients to make sure they build a support system through support groups, joining a Meetup to do an activity... It's important they know support is needed. We're not meant to do everything on our own."

"Because of the pandemic, I've heard a lot of people really did get a chance to look at their lives, reassess their values, connect with themselves and in turn better connect with others."

"If you are doing all that you can (seeing a professional therapist, getting diagnosed, taking care of your symptoms, exercising, eating well, using social supports) and still experiencing depression then maybe the next thing is medication."

"Medication effectiveness is really on an individual level. Sometimes lower levels of serotonin or genetics may require an extra boost from medication to help."

"The way the world runs is we're looking at all the external things that people have, how they're presenting... We've veered from wanting to connect with people to get to know them for who they are, and veered into 'what can this person do for me?"

"We get caught up in the cycle of looking for the next best thing, but we're really missing out on a part of who we are as humans. Being in nature is important - fresh air and sunlight are a form of relaxation what we miss if we're constantly chasing status and riches.

"Hari talks about how we need other people to help us feel like we're safe. When sleeping alone we wake up repeatedly to make sure we're ok. When sleeping alongside someone we sleep better because we know we're safe."