2024-01-21 21:26:00
A woman hugging a man while smiling (Freepik)
After having gone through more than two years of distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic in our country and throughout the world, today we can once once more enjoy human connection through a universal gesture of love and affection as common as the hug is.
People’s need for a hug is due to both biological and psychological factors, because we are social and emotional beings who desire physical contact with others and who experience emotional well-being with each shared caress. Because, as the Peruvian Ministry of Health (Minsa) states, a simple hug makes a difference.
However, perhaps what many ignore is that hugging contributes to the mental health of those who establish this type of body-to-body contact. Today, which is World Hug Day, is a good opportunity to discover why hugging is healthy and what the positive effects are on mental health. Because there is no better way to celebrate this day than with a strong, warm and tender hug.
Far from being anxious, we should be wiser and fill ourselves with the responsibility of treasuring each moment with both hands (Getty)
World Hug Day is commemorated every January 21 and has established itself as a tradition that celebrates affection between people. In 1986, Kevin Zaborney, a psychologist at the University of Michigan in the United States, created this initiative with the intention of encouraging the gesture of hugging between friends and loved ones. The philosophy behind World Hug Day is that every hug increases people’s mental health.
As World Hug Day has gained popularity, it has become more common to hear regarding how long each hug should last or how many hugs are needed for this gesture of affection to improve mental health.
On the one hand, Christy Kane, a psychologist at the University of Southern California who has more than 20 years of experience in the area of mental health, proposed that, to experience the emotional well-being offered by hugs, they should last for a long time. of at least eight seconds.
Older adult giving a hug to his son (Freepik)
Kane, a specialist in anxiety and depression treatments, proposes that giving and receiving an eight-second hug eight times throughout the day is an important source of emotional well-being.
On the other hand, the American psychotherapist Virginia Satir was even more precise regarding the number of hugs that each person should give and receive daily, as if it were medicine or therapy. She stated that “we need four hugs a day to survive, eight hugs to feel good and twelve hugs a day to grow and be happier.”
Kane and Satir’s statements agree with A study in which more than 20 thousand older adults, over 65 years old, participated. A comparison was made between those who received hugs every day, most days, or some days versus those who never received hugs. It was found that those who received hugs lived longer than those who did not receive any hugs.
Man smiling and with open arms ready to hug someone (Freepik)
Among the mental health benefits that hugs offer, we can highlight the following:
- Reduces stress: receiving hugs can reduce the negative impact of stress following conflicts, thus promoting a better mood. The emotional contact that involves a hug deactivates areas of the brain related to the stress response and reduces the release of stress-associated hormones such as cortisol and norepinephrine.
- Strengthens emotional bonds: physical contact, such as a hug, triggers a release of oxytocin in the body, known as the love hormone. This chemical process strengthens emotional relationships between people, such as mothers and children, romantic partners or close friends.
- Improves self-esteem: Hugging is a form of social contact that not only promotes greater closeness with others, but also contributes to a sense of self-esteem and well-being. Sharing a hug can boost serotonin and dopamine levels, in addition to stimulating the release of endorphins, hormones associated with pain relief and a feeling of pleasure. This emotional well-being from hugs benefits self-esteem because it improves the personal perception one has of oneself.
- Helps you sleep better: By reducing cortisol levels, hugging helps prevent insomnia. Cortisol is a hormone that plays a significant role in regulating sleep-wake cycles, but when high levels caused by stress can result in sleep disruptions.
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