Hey y’all,
Before we dive in, I want to start with a check-in.
How are you really feeling?
Not the “I’m fine” that gets auto-piloted through your group chat replies or when someone asks you during small talk. But the version of you that may feel exhausted, hopeful, disconnected, stretched thin, grateful and/ or all of the above. Consider your best friend is doing the check in, now ask your self “How am I doing?”
If that resonates with you, you’re not alone. I’ve been feeling it too.
The world keeps moving fast, and in between the back-to-back Zooms, group texts that go unanswered, and the endless to-do lists, there’s been a lingering feeling I couldn’t quite name. It wasn’t burnout exactly. It wasn’t loneliness either. But something was off and I didnt feel like me.
And then I remembered something I’d read and later lived:
We are not meant to go through life alone.
Whether you’re building your career, navigating grief, starting over in a new city, or simply trying to make sense of the world, we all need people. We need safe spaces. We need community.
Loneliness is a public health crisis
It’s not just a “nice to have.” Community is a vital sign for your health.
According to the Surgeon General in 2023, social connection can reduce the risk of premature death as much as quitting smoking, being physically active, or maintaining a healthy weight. Meanwhile, social isolation and loneliness can increase the risk of heart disease by 29% and stroke by 32%.
Let that sink in. Loneliness can be just as harmful as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
The U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory in 2023 declaring loneliness and isolation a public health crisis. One in two adults in America has reported experiencing measurable loneliness. And it’s not just our elders — young adults aged 18–24 reported some of the highest levels of isolation. With the pandemic having caused a significant increase in this. (Jabbari 2023).
So what’s the solution? It’s connection. It’s a community. It’s belonging.
My Personal Wake-Up Call: What I Forgot, and What I Found
Two years ago, I moved across the country to start a new chapter of my life. At first, it felt empowering. I was doing the thing. But even in the excitement of it all, there were quiet moments of disconnection. I was pouring into work and school, but not constantly pouring into myself. I missed the comfort of old routines, familiar faces, and knowing where I belonged.
What I didn’t expect was to find community in a place I initially went to escape — the gym.
What started as a space to release emotions became a space full of emotion. I was welcomed with that signature southern hospitality, invited into conversations, held accountable, and cheered on. In a place where I thought I’d be sweating in silence, I found encouragement, joy, and family.
That was my reminder:
Community doesn’t have to be huge to be powerful. It just has to be real.
What Community Actually Looks Like
Real community is messy, awkward, sacred, and often built in small, everyday moments:
- The friend who brings you soup when you’re sick.
- The group text that prays for you even when you don’t ask.
- The fitness class where you feel seen and celebrated.
- The advocacy group that fights for justice like your life depends on it — because it does.
The Skin Deep called community “the heartbeat of humanity.” And I believe that. It’s being tethered to something bigger than yourself. In public health, we refer to that as protective.
It’s what keeps us alive and it’s what keeps us well.
What Public Health Must Learn from Community
When we talk about improving health outcomes – especially in Black and Brown communities – we can’t just hand people a pamphlet and expect change.
We have to create spaces of belonging.
We have to fund grassroots efforts.
We have to recognize that barbershops, churches, hair salons, and block clubs are part of the health infrastructure.
—– (OMARI ADDITION TO GIVE EVEN MORE PUBLIC HEALTH CONTEXT TO ARTICLE)
Reclaiming Community as Public Health Infrastructure
Too often, public health efforts focus on data, clinics, and top-down solutions. But real health happens in everyday spaces – barbershops, churches, kitchens, and sidewalks. These are not side notes; they are infrastructure.
Real public health happens in informal spaces – the waiting room of a salon, the pew of a church, the sidelines of a youth soccer game. These are places where people gather, share stories, check in on one another, and pass down wisdom. These places are health infrastructure, even if they don’t have a medical sign on the door.
We must move from outreach to ownership. Funding local leaders, trusting grassroots wisdom, and building solutions with communities, not just for them.
Because community holds the wisdom. Community is care.
Public health without community is just a theory. With community? It becomes transformation.
Call to Action: Build It, Sustain It, Be It
So, what can you do today?
- Reach out — Text someone you’ve been thinking about. Not a meme. A real check-in.
- Show up — Attend the event. Join the group. Go to the meetup.
- Create space — Start the book club. Host the dinner. Invite the new coworker.
- Advocate for it — Push for community-centered policies, programs, and funding.
Your community doesn’t have to be big. It just has to be intentional. And it starts with us.
Final Words: You Are Needed. Period.
Wherever you are today, I hope you know this:
You are not alone.
You are not a burden.
You are needed.
Community is medicine.
And we all deserve to be well.
🧡 Aliyha Hill, MPH
Links
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/importance-of-community