How to not feel so lonely
How I did it: I have been feeling lonely for a while now but I had been at school and it wasn't so bad there because of all the other people around. Now I am at home and my parents are gone so I am alone for a week. Tonight I wasn't able to sleep in my room, kept on getting sad and afraid and agitated, so I went to the TV room, turned on the TV, turned on all the lights, grabbed a book, a beer, and a teddy bear, and set my bed up in here. So I guess the first step is to distract yourself, either find other people or get enough other things going on like I did so that you aren't lonely. There probably is something very real going on in your life that is making you sad, so don't beat yourself up, but do try to help yourself heal. You could probably further self-medicate (i.e. with more beer) but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.
Then, once I had stopped crying and was calm for a minute, I started to think about all the other people in my life who had been in similar or worse situations, and how the loneliness I felt couldn't be that bad compared to theirs. For example, a friend of my mom's who is older and single and lives on her own in a small apartment in another city. Or a friend of the family's who needs to have the TV on in the background to go to sleep every night, like I did tonight. So maybe it isn't so bad. Maybe this is just growing up, and everyone feels this way at some point. Remembering all the other people in my life who had gone through hard times made me very thankful for the things that I have, like parents that are still alive, some friends that care about me, a TV, a house!, etc. And then due to the feeling of gratefulness I was able to feel less afraid and lonely. Also sometimes signing into chat can help me, even if I don't chat with anyone, just to see people that I know online. Also searching online for testimonials from other lonely people like the ones here also helps reassure me that everyone feels lonely sometimes and it's a very natural phase, and thank goodness for the internet so that we can all be more connected now than before.
Lessons & tips: Be kind to yourself and take your loneliness seriously.
Break out the big guns -- teddy bears, late night Jack in the Box runs, dumb movies, late night TV, hot baths, whatever it takes to distract yourself a little and make yourself feel good.
Think of all the people in your life, especially the ones you know have gone through hard times. Just the memory or thought of them can help keep you warm and reassure you that you will get through this.
You will be fine! You can also call a 24-hour help line, I have called them before and also worked at one, and they are helpful and they are there for you. You don't need to have a problem, just wanting to talk is fine. Loneliness is enough of a problem and just talking through it with them may help you feel better.
Resources: Late night fast food
Arts channel on TV
Help lines: http://www.pamf.org/teen/hotlines.html
Another helpful webpage: http://willigocrazy.org/Ch06a5.htm#what%20to%20do
