Photo by Jason Connolly
While the novel coronavirus pandemic is isolating for everyone, there’s no doubt that it can be especially lonely for people who are over the age of 65.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, seniors across the country have been told to isolate, as they are at high risk of having a severe illness as a result of the virus. The loneliness as a result has been a challenge for people’s mental health, said Jen McAtamney, executive director of Building Hope Summit County
.
“In our community in particular we have a very healthy, active senior population,” she said. “But all of a sudden they were confronted in the first time in their lives, really, (that) ’oh my gosh, my health is (compromised)’ … those things all contribute to poor mental health when you’re in isolation.”