Even before the pandemic, older adults were more likely to be lonely or socially isolated. As adults grow older, they could lose family or friends, live on their own or face a multitude of other factors that could contribute to them feeling less connected. 

Now, in these times of social distancing and shutdowns, seniors are even more vulnerable to loneliness and isolation. Since they are at higher risk of becoming severely ill after contracting COVID-19, many hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living facilities have implemented rules and procedures to protect those most at-risk–including restrictions on visitation.

Larry Weiss, a senior, experienced some of this limitation himself when he was hospitalized in February. Throughout his month-long stay, the hospital had just started limiting visitors. For some of that time, he was only allowed one visitor a day, and that visit could only last around an hour. 

“That was really tough, so I understand,” he said. “Not having the ability to have family or friends or relatives come in, in some capacity, is hard, especially during the pandemic. And people are dying, and they may never see their relatives.” 

And this kind of isolation is not restricted to just those in health care facilities. Some seniors, like Tod Sherman, have been feeling the isolation that comes with social distancing as well.

Read the entire article at This Is Reno.

This portion of the article is shared as part of our collaboration with This Is Reno. This story was originally published on Wednesday, Aug. 19. It was written by Bianca Wright, an alum of Noticiero Móvil.