Solitude may be a very positive and constructive experience, whenever it is a desirable choice of the way of life or otherwise it may be a distressing expe rience, inducing negative feelings, whenever it is externally imposed. In order to understand the poly- morphic influence of the solitude upon the inner life of the soul it is essential to analyze all the causative factors of solitude and the personality's profile of the person who lives in solitude. For the majonty of human beings the solitude is a painful experience, inducing sadness, anxiety and fear, though for others is a chance for spiritual elevation, self-knowledge, interior peace and serenity, happiness becoming also a way to the truth. The imposed solitude or iso- lation is always a painful condition inducing many psychological reactions. It is an unpleasant experi ence, demanding a strong personality profile to be sustained, without vulnerable consequences upon the psychosomatic equilibrium of the suffering per- son. The feeling of the psychological isolation is more depressive in metropolitan areas, where the incorporation of the person in the body of the society is practically difficult. The isolation during childhood and adolescence is a traumatic experience for the children, which is commonly caused by the incom- patibility in the family, due to many contradictions, disputes and ideological differences between the family's members. Children under isolation have poor performances in the school, as a rule, due to inadequate attention, high self-insecurity and low self-esteem. The adolescents can easily distinguish the big difference among the imposed social isolation and the beneficial, instructive effects of the voluntary solitude. Phenomena of self-rejection, which occur occasionally in adolescence living in isolation, aro more frequent in females than in males and are associated with psychosomatic phenomena, such as headaches, anorexia, weakness. The solitude is par-
"Professor Emeritus, MD, PhD, Aristotelian University,
Thessaloniki, Greece.
Research Institute for Alzheimer's disease
ticularly painful experience in senility. It is frequently associated with the physical weakness, diseases, socio-economic decline, mental decline, emotional isolation due to widowhood, which are very serious reasons for the enforcement of the feelings of inse- curity and depression. Aged persons, who are admit- ted in institutions for elderly people or nursing homes, feel isolated totally, living in condition of emo- fional starvation. The most tragic isolation happens in cases of old demented persons. That isolation has serious psychosomatic dimensions. In cases of advanced dementia the patients are imprisoned in a "imeless time", in a "vacuum space" and in a func- tionless reality". This style of life causes a rapid dete- rioration of the mental faculties due to limited input of informations and lack of motives and exertions. The voluntary solitude may be beneficial to healthy indi viduals if the principal purpose is the endeavor of spiritual culture, search for the existential authenticity and search for the real way to the truth with apathy and peace. Persons who may recognize the benefi cial contribution of the solitude for meditation, self- knowledge, self-control, inner peace and search of the authentic existential selfhood, feel happiness and contemplation. The real happiness occurs whenever the person achieves to have the experience of real, profound and authentic prayer in solitude.
Key words: solitude, isolation, sadness, despair, self-knowledge, spiritual freedom, existential harmo- ny.
Introduction
The solitude exerts a very individualized influence
on human psychology creating a special psychologi cal atmosphere, especially whenever it is associated with the sense of isolation. Solitude may be very pos- itive and constructive experience, whenever it is desirable, associated with happiness, inner search- ing, creativity and inner freedom, or in the contrary it may be a deficiency state, inducing negative feel ings, leading to social isolation, anxiety and depres sion.