Social Isolation and This
Posted , 12 users are following.
Dan here, a 68 year old male living in East central Florida, USA.
Some background: I've had 2 significant bouts with PMR/RS3PE, one at 52, and another at 64 years, each lasting about 1.5 years, followed by remission with occasional minor symptoms.
I have become increasingly socially isolated, self imposed, and cognitively chosen. The reasons are not germane to this discussion, but I found something that might be significant for us all. I have not heard of this before.
In consideration of the health effects of my self imposed social isolation, I began basic research in Wikipedia, under "Social Isolation" I hope, if you research this on your Wikipedia, you can find it as well.
I found the following passage in the text, without pre or post explanation, and I need help in understanding what it means, and if this (my) isolation may have "this" as a causal factor.
Research by Cole and colleagues showed that perceived social isolation is associated with gene expression — specifically, the under-expression of genes bearing anti-inflammatory glucocorticoid response elements and over-expression of genes bearing response elements for pro-inflammatory NF-κB/Rel transcription factors.[3] This finding is paralleled by decreased lymphocyte sensitivity to physiological regulation by the hypothalamic pituitary adrenocortical (HPA) axis in lonely individuals, which together with evidence of increased activity of the HPA axis, suggests the development of glucocorticoid resistance in chronically lonely individuals
I hope, if you research this on Wikipedia, you can find it as well.
I think this smart crowd here can help me make sense of this, and help me sort it out. I'm not exactly sure what this is saying, but they are sure using a lot of words that ping on PMR causal factors.
Thank you for your review, and best to you all, this season.
Dan
0 likes, 35 replies
Harrie4 Danrower
Posted
Hey there, Dan (if i may be so bold!), my reading of the text above can, it seems to me, be paraphrased (with a bit of licence) to posit a co-relation between introverted personality traits and hyper-inflammatory systemic response factors. So I can't help but wonder whether you are misanthropic as you suggest or if you are simply an introvert. It would be fascinating to see data on potential co-relation between introversion and prevalence of autoimmune disorders. Being an introvert in the US -- that most extroverted of countries -- would not be a day at the beach. I shld think it could contort a person's social persona while not coincidentally challenging one's auto-immune system on a pretty regular basis. (I'm an introvert myself, as if that isn't already apparent. )
You might want to check out Susan Cain's "Quiet" although it wouldnt surprise me if you read it years ago. My sense is that once an individual is knowledgeable wrt personality type, anxiety and corresponding stress levels tend to diminish somewhat -- along with irritability and impatience.
And btw, you dont have to be a lonely introvert -- but you do have to find other introverts to hang with. I hope you find a few sympatico introverts down there in FLA.
Wishing you the best!
Danrower Harrie4
Posted
Hi Harrie,
My, are you a seer? Summed me up. I joke that it took 45 adult years for me to find my mind, just in time to lose it. And, yes, I've got Cain's book on my shelf.
I stagger back at your insightful observation.
I have been involved in incongruent activities and occupations most of my life (American football, naval aviation, and on ) and agree that these incongruities may contribute to dissonance and isolation. However, after reading the subject passage, I posted to see if there was a causal biochemistry towards isolation, rather than the inverse. So you state you're introverted. Perhaps introversion is a result of a specific set of biochemical factors which may have also precipitated our auto-immune conditions.
Sometimes I feel like I'm blindfolded, feeling around in a dark room, in understanding these things.
I agree about our culture here. We were founded on revolution and slavery, but remember, we grew from British Colonies. Are you in the UK?
And yes you may be so bold.
Thank you for your careful reading and consideration.
Dan
Harrie4 Danrower
Posted
Yes indeed, our brains and genetic endowment constitute the material substrate for psychological manifestations, including personality types, emotional traits, and behavior. But the feedback loops in these loosely coupled systems are so complex that causality goes out the window either way mo. It seems to me at least, that we can only evaluate correlations and probabilities. In which case, our actions can serve to add or reduce the strength of the vector. Yay for neuroplasticity!
So a little socializing on a regular basis is helpful -- and a little goes a long way with folks that are sympatico. Do you paint or take pictures, Dan? I know a paddler who extroverted once he had a camera in his hands.
Btw, I'm Canadian from a little neck of the woods hard against Vermont's North East Kingdom. I suspect that introverts are in the majority here -- lucky for me!
Thanks for the great initial question and for your kind words. In my experience, introverts rock....once they know and appreciate themselves as such.
Keep reeling in the years!