There is a plethora of evidence that supports ‘spirit guides’, ‘angels’, etc, etc, that routinely interject themselves into the lives of those experiencing this conscious contact.

It would appear that the more noise and distraction that we create the more difficult it is to act in a conscious manner. Going within ( as in introspection and seclusion ) hardly proves that man conjures up his own world but rather it supports the stories of those who have gone to the “mount” or “forrest” for enlightenment.

While it does seem possible that some people will “lose”themselves during such self imposed isolation it seems more of an issue of whether the person was “lost” to begin with.
This is really bad “science” and to even report it is even more negligent on the behalf of the author of this piece. It smacks of a “witch hunt” and replete with ignorance and insularity. Dear gOd! When will wisdom be the rule of the day rather than subjective journalism?

At the time, my apartment also happened to be infested with roaches (not unrelated to the way I was neglecting health and hygiene). As the weeks passed, I went from seeing the roaches as invaders and being disgusted by them to seeing them as cohabitants and felt less alone having them around. Looking back, it’s crazy that I got to that point, but at the time, it felt totally normal.

But I would love to also see study that showed if online social interaction could counter this. I think there’s a distiction to be made between alone and lonely. I’m a grad student and am alone most days (sometimes weeks) but I don’t feel alone (or lonely). I know that’s anecdotal evidence, but I still wonder where my sanity would be if it weren’t for the web and Twitter.