At the heart of us is the need for proximity – emotional and physical closeness is the enduring evolutionary measure of our success in social interaction.

In modern times, as we disconnect through digital connection, this need is not being fulfilled in the ways it has been for millennia. For some this need sits as a yearning wound, for others an undercurrent of something being missing.

Although it is worrying that we are losing the environments and possibly the internal machinery to achieve the closeness that was once so natural, what is more worrying is the internal disconnect with ourselves.

The bombardment of the senses, the fragmentation of social norms, the pace of modern life, the access to entertainment and distraction – all of these are disturbing the periods of quiet reflection and the reconnection with nature that leads to reconnection with our true self.

It is far easier for us to sense the disconnect from others than it is to sense the disconnect from ourselves. This leaves us prone to further damage from the potential disastrous consequences of reaching out to connect with someone when we haven’t grounded ourselves.

We must make time for the periods of reflection, ideally surrounded by a natural environment. Time to day dream, to consider our hearts and minds and not our tasks and schedules. We should be thinking bigger than even our anxieties.

If we yearn to connect with others we need to start closer. We should start with ourselves.