ssues & ideas EDITOR BAILEY NICHOLSON THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOV. 19, 2015 7 Self-isolation and the modern hermit Online services are a doyble- edged sword) eading to more free time, but also seclusion Meal delivery site caters to recluses Housebound people feel a connection through food By KATE RICHARDSON delivery service targeted towards ice: going through significant ife changes is helping to build re- lationships through meal giving. Mealtrain.com allows friends, fam- ily and even strangers to organize the drop off of meals to those far away dur- ing the first weeks and months of par- enthood, and can also help isolated in- dividuals recovering from illness or other life changes. Charlotte Watson, a counsellor and mother, said she believes in the link be- tween health, food and support, and regularly sets up food deliveries for new mothers. She said that when look- ing after babies or toddlers, parents shouldn’t be expected to cook the food. “Your job should be 100 per cent giving the love and care for your children,” she said. Watson orga- nized a meal train for fellow mother Crystal Kenzie, who lives in Victo- ria. For Kenzie, CHARLOTTE WATSON the delivery meant feeling nur- Counsellor and mother tured. “It’s impor- tant to feel that you are being cared for so that you have that much more to put out there for your children. It’s an emotional positive... But it’s also the psychologi- cal ‘hey, I’m not alone,” she said. Isolation is common for mothers, ac- cording to both Kenzie and Watson. They use social media to reach out to other mothers across the province. Online groups can also help new parents connect with those who are in a better position to help out, rather than relying solely on friends who are often young parents themselves with little time or energy to spare. “They [friends with babies] didn’t have much left resource wise to help support me,” Watson said. For her, food is not just what we put in our bod- ies. “Physically we need to be nour- ished. And having that physical need met can nourish us emotionally.” By KATHRYN WU or students suffering from social anxiety, taking only online class- es may be a tempting option, but experts agree that it could be det- rimental in the long run. Brianne Glazier, a clinical psycholo- gy postdoctoral researcher at UBC, de- fined social anxiety as “feeling anxiety in certain situations where you might be observed or evaluated by other peo- ple.” A person can become socially anxious due to a number of factors in the classroom, leading them to opt for online classes, according to Glazier. “For some people, just being around other people makes them anxious. Go- ing to class can be something that KATHRYN WU photo illustration Those looking to avoid large crowds and group dynamics have the ability to attend class in their pajamas from bed via online courses. Online courses deepen detachment Students with social anxiety may prefer taking classes from home, but experts say it’s not a solution causes anxiety for them. For people with less severe social anxiety, it’ll be having to participate in class,” said Glazier. Talia Sorace, an SFU student who has had a lifelong struggle with anxi- ety, said that at one point she was too afraid to go to school and sought help from therapists. Despite her obstacles, Sorace is cur- rently enrolled in regular classes and advises students with social anxiety to attend classes as well in order to di- minish that anxiety. “Taking all online classes just keeps you in a shell, and you will never get better,” she said. Tim Charters, a Langara College counsellor, said that avoiding the class- room environment could strengthen the phobia for students suffering from social anxiety. “The panic will subside because you're avoiding...and so what happens is it starts to strengthen that associa- tion between avoidance and relief,” Charters said. Charters highlighted two main prob- lems for students relying solely on on- line education. “It might be difficult to complete a program with solely looking at stuff that’s offered online. Also, the person wouldn’t have the opportunity to have the exposure that could help with ulti- mately dealing with the anxiety,” Char- ters said. He advises students to use the coun- selling facilities available at Langara. 66 Taking all online classes just keeps you in a shell, and you will never get better TALIA SORACE SFU STUDENT Connection lapse with dating apps fo tis BAILEY NICHOLSON photo Students Stefania Ceschia and Floorance Faqiri glued to their phones. MORE dating apps BUMBLE Has a similar function to Tinder, but only women are allowed to initiate the conversation HINGE This app connects you with people who share mutual Facebook friends with you HOWABOUTWE People are matched by describing and comparing their perfect first date experience TASTEBUDS Potential partners are matched by musical interest Forming true intimacy through a screen proves challenging for app users By JASON HAMILTON norm for many students and peo- ple on the go, but the resulting interactions may lead to isolation rath- er than intimacy. Apps like Tinder, Plenty of Fish, Grindr and Spoonr (for platonic cud- dling only) are just some of the options available for those looking for human connection from the comfort of home. Kody Veltin, a UBC geological engi- neering student, said that using both Tinder and Grindr left him feeling lonely, and didn’t result in any substan- tial relationships. “ve had experiences where I would really like the guy online, but when I meet him, his real life persona doesn’t match up with his online persona, which is frustrating,” he said. “And also Grindr always just felt predatory and creepy, lots of older guys just look- ing for a random hookups. Not a good way to meet someone meaningful.” D:: apps have become the new Julien Suvarna, a first-year environ- mental studies student at Langara Col- lege, has used Tinder in the past and said he would prefer “an option that if both people wanted to they could Face- Time each other, so at least you get that face-to-face talking, as texting and messaging is so impersonal.” Suvarna also said that using Tinder drew him more indoors as opposed to interacting with women in person. “It’s not like I would stay home just to Tin- der, he said. “[But] I would stay at home and not talk to girls outside.” Carrie Jenkins, the UBC philosophy chair who specializes in romantic rela- tionships, explained that while using traditional dating methods like going out and socializing may work for some, it does have its boundaries. “For others, and especially for queer people, poly people, people living in ru- ral communities, and so on, being able to find suitable dating partners by just ‘going out’ is not always something they can take [advantage of],” she said. “Dating apps can play an important role in making it possible to meet po- tential partners, especially when you are looking for something ‘non-de- fault’,” Jenkins said.