Dorothy Mills Angela Harris, chief executive of the charity Community Network which aims to combat social isolation, said: We are getting more and more calls. Increasing numbers of people have television as their only company. Last month the Government launched an unprecedented appeal for 100,000 good Samaritans to look in regularly on an elderly friend or neighbour as the weather turns cold. The campaign is supported by actress Joanna Lumley and QI host Stephen Fry. The move is aimed at preventing rising numbers of pensioners being admitted to hospital through neglect, in what has been predicted will be the NHSs worst winter. FIGURES released last week show the number of extra deaths last winter rose by 29 per cent to 31,100. Esther Rantzen said: Mother Teresa called loneliness the worst poverty of all, which is interesting because she saw poverty at its most agonising. She added that she experienced loneliness after the death of her husband, documentary maker Desmond Wilcox. All my life I would come home to someone, my family, college mates and then a flatmate. When my husband of 27 years died in 2000 I had no one and was living alone for the first time. We all need to watch and listen more. Older people often claim they are fine and they dont want to be a burden but most people need human contact. Older people are a treasure and should be treated as such. Since its launch on Monday, The Silver Line has received 5,000 calls from lonely people and a further 4,000 from potential volunteers. Callers included Bob, a 92-year old widower from Cumbria, whose two children live far away. He said: It is 65 years since we married but more to the point 72 years since we first kissed. She waited for me through the war and I for her. Loneliness? Tell me about it. Barbara, 85, is looking after her 87-year-old husband who has Alzheimers disease. She said: I know it isnt a crisis so I cant call the Samaritans but I just need to talk to someone about the way I feel. Janet, 79, rang to say: I have just bought myself some pyjamas. I am about to run a hot bath. I rang just because I wanted to say goodnight to someone. One caller said that having telephone contact made them feel part of the human race again. Another described his lonely life as feeling like I have been stuffed under a carpet to be forgotten.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Apr 2014 10:04:58 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015