By Jo

As we head towards the end of 2023 (where oh where did that time go?!) and our first year of offering groups at The Social Confidence Collective – as a team of occupational therapists, we’ve been thinking a lot about social connection as an occupation. The word occupation is a special one to Rachel, Sonya and I…occupation means all the things that we humans do to occupy our time – all the things that we want and need to be able to do. Satisfaction and participation in these occupations supports our health and wellbeing, and we love helping young people to be able to do the things that are important to them. For a deep dive into occupational therapy, jump across to Rachel’s blog post here.

When it comes to connecting with others as an occupation, the young people we’ve been supporting have been teaching us a lot about what social connection looks like for them. For some, it’s connecting with others through conversations about things they love. For others, it means enjoying time spent together doing activities like playing video games or art, whilst maybe not talking at all. We’ve also been meeting many young people who’ve taken time out from being in the world to recover from a stressful time and who are wanting to gently get back into connecting with others again.

So, why have we created a service that focuses on supporting young people to connect? Well…as mental health professionals, we are very aware of the impact of social isolation on mental health and wellbeing. And, we are passionate about supporting young people to improve their wellbeing through meaningful social connection.

Social Connection Can Be Good For Us!

Research evidence shows that there are strong relationships between levels of social connection and mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety. People who experience loneliness have double the risk of developing depression, and social connection may even reduce the risk of becoming depressed in some people!

Loneliness is also experienced at higher levels in people who experience social anxiety, and many people try to manage their social anxiety by keeping to themselves. We know this is a coping strategy for many – but it’s tricky because that can further contribute to loneliness in some people. For a deep dive into the literature associated with social connection and mental health – check out this piece written by Social Creatures which we loved!

It's important to understand though, that there is not one type, amount or frequency of social connection that is right for everyone. We’re all individuals and we all need different amounts and types of social connection. I like to use an analogy of cup sizes here. Some of us only need a small amount of social connection before we get fatigued and need some social downtime or time to ourselves. I’d describe these people as having “small social cups”. Other people get their energy from being around other people, they enjoy spending time around others most days and can easily experience loneliness if they don’t get lots of social input; these people have “big social cups”.

**What amount of social interaction do you need?**

**Do you have a big social cup that needs filling? Or a small one that can easily fill up and get overwhelmed?**

Here are some tips to help you learn more about your social preferences:

Understand your social cup size.

Ask yourself, how much social time do you need or want in your life, and what amount is right for your well-being? Do you have a small social cup and find that whilst you enjoy connecting with people, you find it important each day to have time to yourself?

Or are you a social butterfly, needing and wanting socialisation every day? Do you have a big social cup and find yourself feeling a bit lonely without connecting to others?

Explore opportunities to connect with others based on your cup size

If you know you have a small social cup, think about your week and all the things you need and want to do. How much of these activities require you to interact with people? Which situations are going to use up a lot of your social energy? Based on this, use the supports around you to come up with a routine for your days and weeks where you regularly find time to rest and recover from social situations.

If you have a big cup, but are finding yourself feeling lonely, have a think about what new social opportunities there might be for you to add to your week. Do you have particular hobbies or interests that you enjoy? Could you find a way to connect with other people around these interests? You could join a local club or class, or maybe even explore Meet Up (link here) groups in your area.

You do YOU when it comes to social connection

As I mentioned before, there are so many different ways of socialising in our society. Spend some time thinking about not only the amount of social connection that you need, but also explore your preferred ways of being with others. Some people will prefer to be in the physical presence of others when connecting, while others will feel more comfortable connecting in online communities. There is no right or wrong way to be with others!

If you’d like support to explore your social preferences and consider ways to develop social connections, please contact us at The Social Confidence Collective.

Reference.

Braren, S. H. (2023, November 9). Social Connectedness 101: Social Connection and Mental Health. The Creature Times, Social Creatures. https://www.thesocialcreatures.org/thecreaturetimes/social-connection-mental-cognitive-emotional-health