LeaderWise staff have found that clergy often struggle with a sense of loneliness, disconnection, and isolation due to the unique demands of their work. Loneliness is a neglected issue that has negative physical and mental health implications, and research shows that a lack of social support is linked to higher rates of clergy burnout. Below are a list of resources related to this occupational hazard including brief articles, blogs, websites, and books that present warning signs, loneliness types, the impact of loneliness, and recommendations for increasing your meaningful connections with others.
Resources on Loneliness
- Seek out a therapist in your local community or via LeaderWise Counseling
- Reflection: Clergy - Good People, Bad Friends! (LeaderWise Blog)
- Overcoming Loneliness in Ministry (Alban Duke Divinity School )
- Lonely Pastors (The Christian Century)
- Isolation and Loneliness: The Danger Zone for Pastors (PIR Ministries)
- Everyone’s Pastor: No One’s Friend (Christianity Today )
- Seven Types of Loneliness and Why it Matters (Psychology Today)
- How Loneliness Can Make You Sick (American Psychological Association)
- Mind: For Better Mental Health (Mind)
- Health Direct (Loneliness, Isolation and Mental Health)
- Social Isolation: It Could Kill You (American Psychological Association)
- Guys, We Have a Problem: How American Masculinity Creates Lonely Men (NPR: Hidden Brain Podcast)