Kodokushi: the wave of lonely deaths that ravages Japan

If we think of Japan, probably the first things that come to mind are its mixture of tradition and avant-garde, its economic power and technology (especially when it comes to robotics), the samurais and geishas or even the frequent natural disasters that they often have to deal with. face.

Focusing more specifically on their way of life, they tend to highlight the extreme level of personal and social demands of their society, his high labor productivity and the search for honor both for himself and for his family and ancestors.

However, few people tend to think about the high level of loneliness that a large part of its population has, especially when they reach retirement and old age. This fact has led to the appearance a sad phenomenon that is becoming more and more frequent: the kodokushi, which we will talk about next.

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Kodokushi: a lonely death

It is understood as kodokushi or lonely death a booming phenomenon in Japan, to the point of becoming a social problem.

It is, as the translation of the term indicates, the process by which a large number of people die in absolute solitude in their houses, their death being unknown for a while and generally being found days or weeks later due to the smells of the house. decomposition.

Generally, this phenomenon is observed in people from forty-five to fifty years of age, especially in the case of men.

In many cases they do not have close friendships and have not managed to form a family (many of them of them single), or despite maintaining family ties they did not see each other frequently or daily. They are usually people who are alone in the last moments of their lives, generally seniors.

However, cases have also been observed in young people who do not get the means to survive, as well as in people who suffer from some mental disability or are in a situation of dependency or serious illness in people who live alone and have no contact or support network social. In some cases, not only one person dies, but several who lived together, such as couples or mothers and children. In the latter we would be talking more about koritsushi.

The specific causes of death vary enormously in each case, although it is common to find cases of cerebrovascular accidents, heart attacks, starvation o lack of nutrients o consequences of addictions, including cirrhosis from alcoholism (often used to relieve feelings of loneliness).

Causes of lonely death

Kodokushi or solitary death does not have a single cause, being a multi-causal phenomenon, but usually It is generally considered that its high prevalence is mainly due to the difficulties that generate the combination of such a demanding and professionally focused lifestyle, cultural factors and the progressive aging of the population.

Going into greater detail, one of its main causes and in turn one of its defining elements is loneliness: the high level of professional demand and the constant search for excellence make a large part of the Japanese population put aside aspects as relevant as social relationships and personal life, with a significant proportion of single people remaining (in fact, in some sectors around a quarter of the population over fifty) and with little social contact.

It is often stated that part of the blame for the situation is that they barely have time for it, beyond the work contacts that end after retirement. In fact, despite the high level of population in a relatively small territory and the traditional vision in which the elderly live with their children and grandchildren, Japan is one of the countries considered among the loneliest on the globe..

Part of the cause is also the fact that society's demand for excellence, extremely focused on growing at a economic and to be productive, generate high levels of stress that end up generating apathy and a lack of desire to relate and activate.

All this also has repercussions at the demographic level: there are fewer and fewer births, with which the population ages over time.

In many cases, once they retire (or in young people, after going through economic hardships by not finding a job) the people are losing more and more resources, to the point that they can have great economic precariousness and starve. In fact, one of the causes of death is starvation. In some cases they also suffer from dementia or some type of dependency, as we have mentioned above.

Finally, despite the fact that many of these elderly people die after a period of loneliness and from a state that would make them need and even depend on the help of others, loneliness, shame and the thought of not wanting to be a burden make many not dare to ask for help even when they need it, often pretending to be fine in their last years. moments.

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An increasingly common type of death

The first known cases of kodokushi first appeared in the 1980s, and since then the phenomenon has continued to increase over the years.

Although it may be thought that this is a phenomenon that actually occurs throughout the world (and unfortunately it actually does, knowing cases of people who were found days or weeks after their death after neighbors reported the presence of odors), in Japan this phenomenon is extremely frequent: only in 2008 and In the city of Tokyo, more than two thousand people were found dead in the most absolute solitude.

In fact, it is estimated that around 4 to 5% of funerals in the Japanese country are linked to this type of death. And it does not stop: more and more people die forgotten, without ties to the environment and without anyone noticing their absence.

It is something so common that there are even companies specialized in cleaning the homes of these people, in order to eliminate both belongings like the stains left by the effluvia of the bodies on the surfaces of the buildings (remember that many have been decomposing for weeks and even months).

The need for preventive measures in Japan

The phenomenon has reached such a level (and not only in Japan, being something more and more frequent throughout the world), that it has become necessary to start establishing preventive measures. In the Japanese country, for example, the government collaborates with the electricity and water companies to try to detect the sudden cessation of the use of said supplies that could be linked to a case.

Educational policies and the favoring of more prosocial and community values ​​could also be helpful, as well as the search for a strengthening of family ties and socio-community integration through activities, devices and events.

It is also essential tackling poverty and the lack of minimal resources, being a part of the deaths derived from starvation, and the creation of institutions where they can socialize and carry out activities beyond work.

Also initiatives such as those observed today in some countries, in which volunteers go to homes for the lonely elderly can help them feel more accompanied and promote their socialization.