I’ve just had an incredible two-and-a- half weeks of lovely hugs and snuggles.

What a wonderful gift! Do we appreciate the wealth that comes to us each time a grandchild hugs us or an adult child pulls us close for a bear hug or a gentle cuddle? How about the arm drape with a nice back rub or shoulder squeeze?

What a lift each of those embraces adds to the day!

Right?

Family therapist Virginia Satir has said,

“We need four hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need 12 hugs a day for growth.”

While that may sound like a lot of hugs, it seems like the more hugs, the better, to me.

All the medical and psychological data point to the huge importance of positive physical contact often. every day. for us to maintain our overall physical and mental wellbeing.

When we hug or when two humans embrace, they release a hormone called ‘Oxytocin’ which is also called the ‘love hormone’ or ‘bonding hormone’ which makes us feel warm, loved, good and fuzzy inside.

Oxytocin is a neurotransmitter that acts on the brain’s emotional center, promoting feelings of contentment, reducing anxiety and stress. When you hug often, your level of Oxytocin increases, which strengthens your social bonds.

It can reduce anxiety and make you feel like you belong to someone and you are special to someone. It can release stress and allows you to feel better. Hugging also stimulates dopamine and serotonin production in the body. Dopamine is a pleasure hormone which is a part of the brain’s reward mechanism. Serotonin is responsible for maintaining mood balance. Hugging is known to boost serotonin levels.

All that just to say this: hugs make you feel good and let others know that you care. It’s not rocket science. We really don’t need the scientific reasoning, or permission, to show others that we love and care about them. COVID made us wary of touching, and we may be rebounding from that dark spot in the past few years, but we are also more appreciative of each and every nuance of affection that we experience now. So, just maybe, the pandemic has made us emotionally stronger in some ways, as well as exposing our vulnerabilities as human beings and our need for each other.

Maybe we can learn from all this that we all need each other, and that another person’s failures may allow us to step forward and be strong where they are still weak. The bottom line is we were/are designed for community by God Almighty. He endowed us with the riches of His love and the capacity and need to love others. Share the wealth. Hug someone today!