Loneliness Epidemic: How Pokémon GO is helping create connections

CLOVIS, Calif. (KFSN) -- At the country of Clovis and 5th Ave successful Old Town Clovis, Pokémon GO Players conscionable astatine a statue not lone to drawback Pokémon, but besides to find friendships.

"A batch of radical who usually thin to support to themselves, they spot different radical with akin interests that they person and they commencement to unfastened up and commencement to talk," said Ociris Gaona, who hosts Pokémon GO meetups successful Old Town Clovis.

Pokémon GO is simply a mobile crippled played utilizing determination tracking and mapping exertion connected a smartphone, and allows players to travel unneurotic to catch, battle, and bid Pokémon.

Gaona and his woman Anna Olea are regular Pokémon GO Players. The mates sees however the crippled not lone brings radical retired of their shells, but it's besides ace effectual successful tackling loneliness.

"There's a subordinate specifically that she moved retired here," said Olea. "She utilized to unrecorded 2 hours from here, and she told maine that she was lonely each the time. Then, erstwhile she moved here, she enactment herself retired determination and her hubby arsenic well."

Loneliness and anxiousness are feelings that Gaona and Olea proceed to battle.

"The crippled has helped maine a lot," said Olea. "Only due to the fact that it's hard for maine to marque friends without overthinking it. The crippled has enactment maine retired determination a batch more."

Gaona started hosting meet-ups successful June 2024. Since then, it's continued to evolve. His astir caller meet-up connected April 19 saw adjacent to 200 people. It's spawned into dozens of players of each ages walking astir Old Town Clovis.

"It's meant to beryllium played socially," said Gaona. "But determination are a batch of players, they're not social, they're introverts. Certain events successful the crippled necessitate you to beryllium portion of a bigger enactment successful bid to implicit the task."

Not lone are radical leveling up friendships, but they're besides getting exercise. No substance your accomplishment level oregon your acquisition points, everyone is invited to effort and drawback them all.

"If you are shy and you're truly reserved successful coming retired to the public, don't be," said Gaona. "You person a batch of like-minded radical present who volition bask your company."

This communicative is portion of the "Our America: Mental State - The Loneliness Epidemic" series. The collaboration betwixt ABC News and the ABC Owned Television Stations aims to stock reporting connected however to physique societal connections, with absorption connected stories astir kids, caregivers, the workplace, the election, the holidays, and anyone looking to larn however to instrumentality attraction of themselves and others.

Click here for each the stories and videos successful our series, "Our America: Mental State - The Loneliness Epidemic.