Perception of loneliness, IMO, is the major player here, as opposed to isolation itself.
Ray makes this point regularly, it's the the stress itself, but the way we perceive this stress which makes all the difference.
This explains why a very intense tennis match or basketball game can be very stressful/harmful but also very beneficial,
depending on the mindset of the player. If someone thoroughly enjoys playing basketball with their friends for example,
the stress of playing is going to lead to positive adaptions.
If someone forces themselves to go on a boring morning jog because they ''feel like they have to'', it's probably going to lead to maladaptive
changes.
It takes sufficient energy to change one's perspective on things, but yeah it can reshape the way we think about loneliness in general.
We do need human contact, but it's not necessarily healthy to depend on it 24/7.
I'm glad you went through the worst and came out better for it @Jib