Trinny Woodall has revealed the 4 practices she incorporates into her life to combat loneliness and has encouraged others to open up and be candid about their struggles with ‘aloneness’ to start the taboo conversation.
We all get lonely now and then. And while we know deep down that everyone else will often experience that same feeling too, it’s refreshing to hear others actually talk about it – especially when they’re as public-facing as Trinny Woodall.
Taking to Instagram, the makeup and skincare mogul shared a very different type of video to her usual beauty and fashion content as she opened up about her struggles with loneliness while on a dog walk in the crisp February weather.
“Let’s have a conversation about aloneness and loneliness,” she said as she admitted in the video’s caption that Valentine’s Day, which has just passed, had left her reflecting on where she stands right now in her life. It’s something a lot of us will be able to resonate with no matter what relationship situation we find ourselves in, which is something Trinny pointed out.
“Whether you are single, looking for love, alone and very content. Maybe your kids have left home and your relationship with your partner isn’t the same. Maybe your girlfriends are all getting married and their lives are different from yours now,” she said, all of this can lead to a ‘feeling of seperation’ that can contribute to loneliness.
For Trinny herself, she revealed that loneliness often comes as a result of poor communication with friends. “I travel a lot and as a result, I think quite a few of my friends think I’m away and don’t get in touch so I do end up reaching out perhaps but then I’m also aware I can withdraw,” she shared in the video’s caption.
But, whatever is making you feel lonely, Trinny says, “I think there are definitely ways we can move forward with it and get to a better place if we’re feeling lonely.” And she has four methods that she relies on, daily and more infrequently, to make sure she feels as good as she can in her relationships with others – but, more importantly, herself.
She explained, “I find when I leave my days with meditation, when I reach out to old friends, when I make an effort to introduce new people in my life [and] when I end my days with writing a little gratitude, I don’t feel lonely.”
Still, as great as the tips are for knowing how to deal with loneliness and also how to be happy alone, they weren’t the main topic of Trinny’s candid admission. What she focused on was the simple act of talking about loneliness, which, she believes, is the most important thing you can do to combat it.
“I think it’s really important to have the conversation because, otherwise, we can scroll our lives away on social media, we can look at people’s lives and think what’s lacking in our own,” she said. “So let’s start the conversation.”
And the conversation has well and truly started in Trinny’s comments section, with a whole variety of people sharing their experiences with the aloneness, most of which have been incredibly positive.
“I think perhaps it is easy when one is alone to fall into a trap of presuming you are supposed to feel lonely, that you need to fill up your days with ‘stuff’ to justify your existence,” one commentor wrote before adding, “Can we just enjoy the ‘being alone’ without feeling guilty?”
Another shared, “I’ve dated on and off over the years, but I’m not lonely and value my peace much more than settling for a guy who doesn’t feel ‘right’, just because that’s what society almost expects.”
And a third commented, “Thank you for this Trinny – you can feel lonely in so many different ways – I was in a marriage where I felt so alone it was ridiculous. Now I’m divorced and I’m on my own, children have all flown the nest but I don’t feel lonely at all.”
