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You love working from home. The commute-free mornings, the flexibility, the sweatpants. And yet — something’s been feeling a little off. You finish the day having spoken to almost no one. You eat lunch alone, again. You’re tired in a way that more sleep doesn’t seem to fix.
You’re not imagining it — and you’re definitely not alone!
The Science Is In: Remote Work and Loneliness Are Linked
A major new study published this month in the journal Science is making waves — and confirming what a lot of remote workers have quietly suspected. Researchers found that people in remote jobs are more socially isolated, anxious, and depressed compared to people who work in-person settings.
The study is significant because of its scale. It’s based on an analysis of five nationally representative surveys conducted between 2011 and 2024, drawing on nearly 590,000 American workers. And critically, it ruled out the pandemic years to isolate remote work itself as the variable.
The increase in mental distress was found to be almost twice as large for those living alone as for those living with family — a finding that lands especially close to home for the many solo remote workers out there.
The researchers are quick to note this isn’t a case for mandatory RTO. Demanding everyone return to the office isn’t the answer, say researchers — but employers should take into account that remote work is taking a toll on workers’ mental health and make in-person time “more attractive for people.”
Workers are willing to give up 4 to 10% of their earnings to have the ability to work remotely — the flexibility is genuinely valued, and worth preserving. The question is: how do you keep the freedom and protect your wellbeing?
Why Human Connection Isn’t a “Nice to Have”
In the recent NPR article, “People love working from home. But does it love them back? Study says No,” Psychologist Gillian Sandstrom of Sussex University puts it plainly: “Psychologists believe this feeling of human connection and belonging is just absolutely crucial to us as humans — that we cannot thrive, that we suffer, if we don’t have that need met.”
This isn’t just about mood. Being alone compromises immune system functioning and cardiovascular system functioning. Studies have also documented that the single biggest predictor of well-being and happiness is the quality of your social relationships.
Remote work, for all its gifts, quietly strips away the ambient social contact that used to be built into the workday — the hallway hellos, the coffee run with a colleague, the shared frustration over a slow printer. None of it felt profound in the moment. But it turns out it was doing a lot of work.
The Coworking Difference (And the Numbers Back It Up)
Coworking spaces were essentially designed to solve this exact problem — and the data on their impact is striking.
88% of coworkers report that coworking drastically reduces their feeling of isolation. 85% say they are more motivated working in a coworking space than at home. And 68% say their mental health improved after separating their work environment from their living environment.
70% of coworking members report learning a new skill since joining — often through community events or peer sharing. And 89% of members report being happier since joining a coworking space.
The mechanism isn’t mysterious. It’s not that coworking magically solves deep loneliness — it’s that it restores the low-grade, consistent social contact that humans are wired to need: a nod from someone at the next desk, a conversation in the kitchen, and a familiar face when you walk in the door.
It Works for Every Personality Type — Including Introverts
Here’s where a lot of people opt out before they’ve even tried: “I’m an introvert. A coworking space sounds exhausting.”
The thing is, coworking isn’t a networking event. You’re not required to be “on.” Most of the time, everyone is heads-down doing their work — just in the same room. The social connection happens gently, in the margins of the day: a comment about your lunch, a question about a podcast someone’s listening to, the five-minute chat while waiting for coffee.
For introverts, coworking can actually be less draining than a traditional office — because there’s no mandatory small talk, no one tracking your schedule, and you can put on headphones and disappear into deep work any time you need to. But the option for human contact is there when your brain needs a reset.
For extroverts, it’s obvious: you get your people. The energy. The spontaneous collaboration. The sense of being part of something.
The sweet spot most remote workers find? Distributed work that combines remote flexibility with intentional in-person time — whether through company events or coworking days — reports better outcomes on both productivity and wellbeing. Even two or three days a week in a coworking space can meaningfully shift how connected and grounded you feel.
What This Looks Like at VIDA
At VIDA, we’ve been watching this unfold up close for years — and we built our membership model around it.
The PT Flex membership — just $150/month for five drop-in sessions/month — exists precisely for the remote worker who doesn’t need a full-time desk but does need regular human contact and a change of scenery. It’s a low-commitment way to test the waters, and it includes full access to the VIDA community and events.
But the benefits at VIDA go well beyond a great place to sit. Monthly Wellness Days — with table massage, chair massage, mini-facials, and acupuncture — are built right into the member experience. A full Pilates studio is onsite at Portland. There are monthly happy hours, community lunches, access to Portland Thorns season tickets, Hollywood Theater events, and VIDA Masterminds: a free, facilitated 10-week cohort for members working toward a personal or professional goal.
These aren’t perks bolted on to a workspace. They’re the intentional architecture of a community designed to help people actually thrive — not just check emails in a slightly nicer chair.
As the new research suggests, the antidote to remote work loneliness isn’t abandoning flexibility. It’s being intentional about connection. And that’s something VIDA was built to make easy.
Ready to see what it feels like? Book a tour at VIDA Portland or VIDA Beaverton — or explore our VIDA Virtual membership if you want community without the commute.
VIDA is a coworking community designed to #MakeLifeWork for our members. With locations in Portland and Beaverton, Oregon, we offer private offices, dedicated desks, and open coworking — alongside thoughtfully curated amenities and an incredible member community.