Connection is Medicine
A three‑part series exploring how human connection shapes our health, resilience, and longevity. Through science, stories, and frontline voices, each week reveals why loneliness is as dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and how relationships, peer support, and community design act as powerful forms of preventive medicine. From individual wellness to organizational culture and global policy, Connection Is Medicine shows that whether you’re on the front lines or helping from the sidelines, people keep people alive.
Week 1
Article:
Connection Is Medicine, Part 1
Aging well isn’t just about adding years, but about reducing the years spent lonely.
In the first of this three-part series, firefighter and coach Roy Smalley shares the story of “Ed,” a 90‑year‑old client thriving through the power of connection. Backed by new research, this piece reveals why loneliness isn’t just emotional pain—it’s a genuine health hazard rivaling smoking or obesity.
Podcast:
Alone in a Crowded World
In this opening podcast episode of the Connection Is Medicine series, Roy explores the quiet public‑health risk of chronic loneliness.
Through two powerful true stories — AJ, a brilliant but isolated IT specialist, and Ed, a 90‑year‑old widower who thrives through family connection — Roy illustrates how relationships profoundly shape the quality of our later years.
Drawing on evidence from the U.S. Surgeon General and long‑term studies, he explains how loneliness is as dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes a day and how strong social bonds act as protective gear for the body, mind, and spirit.
Week 2
Article:
Connection is Medicine, Part 2
If loneliness can shorten our lives, connection can lengthen them.
In the second article of the "Connection Is Medicine" series, we look at decades of research showing that strong relationships protect health more powerfully than cholesterol numbers or genetics. You’ll learn why one deep friendship can be worth more than a hundred casual contacts, how connection rewires stress and inflammation, and how to stop loneliness before it becomes chronic.
From the world’s longest-running happiness study to the story of a ninety‑year‑old named Ed, this piece explores the real science behind why people keep people alive.
Podcast:
Relationships: Emotional Turnout Gear
In this second podcast episode of the Connection Is Medicine series, Roy sits down with Mollie Kallas—a professional who bridges clinical insight and front‑line fire service experience.
Mollie is the AODA Clinical Supervisor with Church Health Services; a firefighter and Health & Safety Officer for the Columbus Fire Department; holds a Master of Science in Addiction Counseling; and is licensed as both a Clinical Substance Abuse Counselor and an Independent Clinical Supervisor.
Together, Roy and Mollie explore what connection looks like when it’s actually working — on the rig, in the station, and in everyday life. They discuss mental‑health stigma, peer support, generational change inside the fire service, and why relationships are as protective as turnout gear. Mollie shares practical ways to build resilience, create a culture of psychological safety, and support first responders through chaos, quiet, and recovery.
Week 3
Article:
Connection is Medicine, Part 3
Loneliness isn’t just personal, it’s global.
In the final article of "Connection Is Medicine," we explore how research from the World Health Organization and a 24‑nation study prove that connection lengthens life and shortens the years we spend lonely. From the firehouse table to city planning and family dinners, evidence shows how simple human contact works like protective gear for the heart and mind.
You’ll leave this piece with clear, evidence‑based ways to strengthen your own networks and help your community do the same. Because in the end, people keep people alive.
Podcast:
Building Connection into the Culture
In this closing conversation of the Connection Is Medicine series, Roy sits down with Janet Zander, a founding member of the Wisconsin Coalition for Social Connection, and Meghan Christian, Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the Institute for Child and Family Well‑Being, to explore how communities, systems, and everyday interactions shape our collective health.
Together, they unpack the recent World Health Organization declaration of loneliness as a global public‑health crisis, reveal what disconnection looks like across both the youngest and oldest generations, and offer hope grounded in everyday action.