"Solitude is the soul's holiday, an opportunity to stop doing for others and to surprise and delight ourselves instead." -Katrina Kenison

Katrina is thinking of "isoulation" or "soulitude", but regular social isolation is harmful.

There are many quotes from well-known people that claim that solitude has benefits. That is cute, but there is a difference between solitude and isolation; isolation is detrimental. While solitude is chosen and can be ended at any time, isolation is not chosen and cannot be ended at any time. Although people may try to claim that solitude is necessary, isolation is never necessary. Isolation is too much solitude.

According to certain reports, social isolation kills more people than obesity does.

Social isolation is considered to be detrimental to our health because people have social needs that should NEVER be ignored. According to these reports, social isolation reduces immune function and increases inflammation. Scientists have claimed that loneliness leads to social evasion and loss of impulse control. This is because social isolation triggers the fight-or-flight response. When people are alone, they know that they are vulnerable. This includes when they feel alone. When they do not feel as if they have a connection to anyone, they feel as if they have to engage in self-preservation, which induces the fight-or-flight response. Feeling social isolation puts the body in stress-mode.

The symptoms of a fight-or-flight response include rapid heartbeat, increased adrenaline, dilated pupils, appetite loss, trembling, high blood pressure, higher cholesterol, Alzheimer's disease, depression, and pale or flushed skin. The fight-or-flight response is a general response to stress or danger. When a person is under such stress or feeling of danger, they engage in this response for self-preservation. The issue is that social isolation is not always easily alleviated.

Symptoms can also include insomnia. One scientist named Cacioppo found that lonely people were more prone to micro-awakenings during sleep as opposed to non-lonely people—proving that the insomnia symptom is associated with social isolation. This is because people who are socially isolated know that they only have themselves in order to look out for themselves. They have to constantly be vigilant in order to ensure that their safety is maintained. People thrive in communities because these communities fulfill their sense of belonging as well as provide social cohesion that keeps them protected. People are much less likely to be attacked in groups, especially when they are in groups of people who feel protective over them.

Researchers found that a rich social network ensured overall happiness and well being for the majority of participants in their studies, regardless of their socioeconomic statuses. Researchers also found a strong correlation between lack of heart disease and stroke with lack of loneliness, and there was a strong correlation between heart disease and stroke with loneliness.

The harmful effects of social isolation are why most of society considers bullying to be offensive and defamation of character to be illegal. Bullying is usually defined as people trying to have power over another person by isolating them and making them feel weak. Defamation of character is used to purposefully poison a person's network to force them into isolation.

Although Katrina Kenison can "delight herself instead" with solitude, we should not attempt to twist social isolation into a "delight." The fight-or-flight response cannot become a fight-or-delight response. No man is an island.