Did you know that cuddles, in addition to comforting us, can help us reduce stress and anxiety levels and strengthen our cardiovascular health?
Discover in this article the importance and the benefits of hugs. They are, without a doubt, one of the most deeply rooted emotional manifestations in all human civilizations.
The need to give and receive affection is imperative for human beings. From childhood, we seek the love of our parents, who protect us in their embrace.
This sentimental refuge provides us with many psychological characteristics that will shape our personality for life.
Benefits of hugs
1. They improve self-esteem
Physical contact in human relationships improves security and self-confidence. It forces us to allow another person, with their embrace, to enter our intimate space.
- With this direct body-to-body contact, we symbolically offer our trust to the other.
We can say that embracing us humanizes us. When we hug someone, we are giving a direct message of affection, appreciation, and empathy.
- This simple gesture improves our morale and brings us human warmth and strength. It is an act in which everyone gives and receives.
2. They teach us another way to communicate
Body language is a true reflection of our emotional state. With our gestures, we also establish communication, even if it is not verbal.
- In that sense, when we hug someone, it projects a message that shows, intuitively, that we receive and understand each other.
We can hug another person because we are moved by the joy of a meeting. We can join together to console grief or to show love, whether as a couple, between siblings or between friends.
The hug is part of that body language that ultimately helps improve communication between people.
3. They reduce stress and anxiety
Few things in life calm an anxiety or panic situation more effectively and quickly than a hug. Hugs, in a time of emotional crisis, help reassure the person.
- Physical contact reduces stress and transmits calm in a moment of anxiety or nervousness.
Therefore, we can say that among the benefits of cuddling comes improving our emotional health. By reducing stress, we gain more moments of serenity and, ultimately, happiness and well-being.
Hugs help in difficult times, when the volume of work is overwhelming or when we find ourselves in a situation we have no control over. No one is so invincible that they don’t need to be cuddled at a critical time.
4. They improve the health of our heart
Hugs are also part of a physical manifestation of love. In the same way that when we kiss someone we love, by kissing the loved one we also have real effects in our body. In particular, there is an increase in the levels of oxytocin.
Oxytocin is a powerful neurotransmitter that provides pleasure, which eliminates physical and mental discomfort. In addition, it also improves the cardiovascular system and the health of our heart.
Hugging, therefore, is the most enjoyable and natural way to prevent or improve cardiovascular disease.
5. They allay the fear of death
Hugs and the various forms of affectionate or friendly physical contact comfort us. In fact, they reduce our fear of death.
- This gives us great inner strength and, at the same time, a need to hug those who also need it.
- The simple fact of holding a person, an animal or even a tree in our arms helps us to face situations that arise more calmly.
- It also allows us to accept with resignation the inevitable moment when our lives come to an end.
6. They promote the secretion of serotonin
The serotonin is a chemical secreted by the body and acts as a neurotransmitter.
When we take our loved ones in our arms, we promote the secretion of serotonin and, therefore, the feeling of pleasure and happiness.
We must keep in mind that in states of depression or high stress, serotonin levels are lower than normal. Therefore, one of the benefits of hugs is that they balance the amount of this substance, which is also responsible for regulating levels of s**xual desire.
