Language That Makes Us Feel Lonely and Isolated

Words like mask, vaccine, open, take out, distance learning, and zooming are all words and terms commonly heard in 2020. The words we use are important. There are words and terms that have been used that can further drive feelings of loneliness and isolation. The words we use matter and they determine our attitudes and feelings towards things.

“There’s a new word for 40 million people in this country: Non-essential, and it’s crazy. We have deemed a giant hunk of our people essentially one click away from [being] unimportant or worthless.” TV show host Mike Rowe said in a TV interview.  Being labeled as “non-essential” has to weigh on someone’s conscience and how they feel about themselves and their vocation. It can’t be a coincidence that people are being labeled “non-essential” and the suicide rate is going up.

Social distancing and staying 6 feet apart have been ingrained in us during the pandemic. It was pointed out by Matt Mullenweg in a podcast that it should actually be called physical distancing. We can still be social and get together but the term “social” distancing is not the correct representation of what authorities actually want us to do which is to not be physically close.

Matt Mullenweg went on to state that working from home is best described as a “distributed workforce” and not “remote work.” The word “remote” invokes a vision of being alone on an island whereas “distributed” is a better representation that workers are spread out.

Consider the words used to describe our circumstances. In a time of feeling less connected to others it’s important we don’t contribute to feelings of loneliness and isolation by not being considerate and thoughtful with our words.