"Man is a social being; nature made him to live with his fellows" Aristotle.

Since the lockdown, the readjustment of our habits has highlighted our need to be in contact with each other. We have reorganised our time and our priorities. Loneliness was very present for some of us, and we received a lot more messages to that effect on the senior network: Senior.Life. 

We were able to observe that we were better equipped, by testing the tools of the net to keep in touch despite the isolation necessary during the pandemic. Reunions with friends via live videos on social networks have become very popular. Children and grandchildren communicated with their grandparents in this way, so that everyone could meet up through a screen. Messaging groups exploded.  Many of us have become more active on the net, including for shopping and researching activities and services, but also for senior encounters.

Of course, this is no substitute for real encounters, but it has nonetheless helped to foster moments of sharing and joy.

Being connected is fundamental. From birth to death, human beings need their peers to exist. Our friends entertain us, support us, recognise us, bring back memories and make us think. Social ties enable us to develop our identity in relation to what others reflect back to us, influence us and show us who we are. We are the result of a large number of positive and negative interactions throughout our lives. Relationships are necessary and, according to many scientists, even vital. As Abraham Maslow developed in his pyramid of needs.

According to a series of studies at Harvard over several decades, the human beings who are happiest are those who have developed the most quality relationships. 

Our positive relationships keep us healthy, unlike loneliness, which can be a driver of depression.

An interesting study also shows that we are not born alone, but can become so, as a result of negative experiences that lead people to isolate themselves in order to protect themselves. In other words, if this is the case, it would be advisable to take care of these wounds to get back on the road to dating.

How can our senior social network meet the need to create links? 

While it is essential to meet up in real life, some of us find it difficult to find ourselves in dating situations. Seniorlife.be has developed its own social network to enable people to meet in a completely different way to other dating sites or networks. It is not a dating site, where the message is to form a couple. Instead, it's a place where you can find people, men and women, aged 50 and over, who don't particularly have a love plan in mind. But, at any time of the day, there are opportunities to find out about each other's activities, passions and inspirations, and to create an opportunity to meet, based on shared and common interests. 

On the news feed, there are messages and inspirations from each other. And also from our ambassadors, like Jacques Mercier, who shares his haiku with us, and Marie, who regularly talks to us about her travels. More and more enthusiasts are joining us, talking about themselves and creating links. Our team is planning a major expansion of this network, not only in terms of functions over the coming months, but also in terms of expert content and entertainment. 

This way of meeting on the net is a prelude to meeting people in real life, a place where people arrange to meet: "come and join us at this activity! A place of inspiration: "I'd like to do what that lady did..." "I'd like to read that book". "A place of learning: "I'm going to try this way of doing things", a place of reflection: "I like this or that...". A place of smiles: "That's a nice picture, that sentence", a place of support: "I feel lonely". 

In this way of creating links, we are a little more protected from what are known as "grazers"... ill-intentioned people who might seduce you to rob your wallet. The mission of our network is to put you in touch with people who share your interests.

We look forward to welcoming you to the network for senior citizens. When you register, don't forget to validate your e-mail address to activate your account, and check your spam folder if you haven't received a reply! See you soon, Sophie.