Why do so many people say they're lonely on here? Do you

>>17489027
Some of these people have psychological issues that prevent them from either engaging in social interaction (eg social anxiety) or gaining the normal benefits from it (eg antisocial conditions).

They are basically socially handicapped, and things that are easy for most people are hard for them.

People come here for advice. When they are frustrated with things and their emotions. It's a place to go when you feel you have no one to talk to.
As for loneliness, yes. You can go talk to someone randomly, sure. But the kind of loneliness people here feel is crippling for different reasons.
People never truly connect anymore. It's a race to become perfect and there is no room for anyone other than the ones that meet your standards.
People aren't lonely in general, I think it's more like they can't find anyone to connect to that fits their standards or desires.
So they suffer alone in their journey to become the person they want to be because the people that they want to be around, don't want to be around them as they are.

It's fucked but it's almost a self inflicted solitary confinement.

I feel like lonely people just need someone that takes that pain away. I personally love being alone as often as possible (which isn't often enough because I will sometimes only get to spend one day a week not constantly surrounded by people) and I use my alone time to practice guitar and write.

There are a lot of reasons.
How many are valid, I could not say.

I could come up with many excuses to tell you why it is that I feel lonely, but ultimately, they all boil down to an unwillingness to connect with others despite having the innate desire to.

Maybe I don't like myself.
Maybe I think I'm a bad person.
Maybe I'm ashamed of my actions.
Maybe I think that I'm inferior to others.
Maybe I tell myself that being alone is okay.
Maybe I rationalize my behavior by bringing down others.
Maybe this is a condition of interaction through my developmental phase as a young child.
Maybe this is because I never fit in.
Maybe it's because all of my previous attempts to connect with others have failed.
Maybe it's because I believe that I'm mentally deficient.
Maybe it's because I believe that I can't.
Maybe I feel that I never have anything to offer others.
Maybe I'm afraid of learning that I'm inept.
Maybe it's because I feel I have no skills.
Maybe it's because I have no goals, or ambition.
Maybe I think too much and act too little.
Maybe I'm too ashamed of who I am, and what I look like to allow myself to interact with others in a meaningful way.

There are many, many more things that I could add...

I don't know. Ultimately, it's me. Everybody else can do it, right? I guess I'm just a screw up. So I end up in between some insane decision of living until my girlfriend dumps me, or taking my own life to make others happy.

It's pathetic, right? Nobody wants to connect with somebody that feels this way. So the hole gets deeper.

Maybe it's just a combination of being in a bad place, and not having anybody to talk to.

>>17489090
This entire post is why clinical psychology and psychiatry exist as professions.
It's just as hard to figure out what's wrong with yourself when you're mentally ill as when you're physically ill. Maybe even harder.
Professionals have the knowledge and experience necessary to pin down the problem and help fix it.

>>17489027
Everything in my life is great except that I'm a virgin in my 20s.
Never had a girlfriend, only ever kissed girls at parties (they instigated on both occasions so don't give me any funny looks).

I would give up my job that I love (and pays $20 an hour after tax), if it meant I could have a relationship with a smart and kind-hearted girl who was a little bit geeky, had at least an average face, and wasn't overweight.

I get the feeling that I'll meet someone someday, but in the mean time I feel like I'm wasting my life (despite the fact that I'm working on my masters).

>>17489101
(Not the same poster as your quote)
Why should I want to get better?

I don't even know if I want to be happy. I don't enjoy life, but why should I?