"We didn’t hug
today did we?"
Jennifer Vanderau
Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter
(5/2019) I saw a fascinating article on Facebook a few
months ago about hugging and I wanted to share.
There have apparently been studies
on the benefits of hugging. When people hug, particularly
for an extended period of time with someone they trust,
the pituitary gland releases oxytocin, which is
responsible for feelings of love and care and safety and
comfort.
If everyone would hug for
20-seconds a day with a special someone, the theory is
this would be a different world.
Blood pressures would lower.
Stress hormones like cortisol would be reduced. There
would be a pretty significant impact on the general sense
of well-being.
Interestingly enough, this may not
be true for everyone as evidenced by the rebuttal I read
from a fellow who deemed a 20-second hug was 17 seconds
too long and the mere thought of it heaped massive amounts
of undue stress on his psyche.
So, apparently, this experience
may not be the same for everyone. I stand corrected, Mr.
Snarky Facebook man.
In all sincerity, though, and to
be fair, there are folks who aren’t into hugging and
that’s cool. There are plenty of other ways to de-stress
and reduce cortisol.
But, if you are a hugger and get
that good-feeling after sharing a hug or a snuggle with a
loved-one, the 20-second hug could be just the thing for
you.
From a Chinese medicine
standpoint, (if I may sneak into Renee Lehman’s territory
for a brief moment and discuss some of what I’ve learned
from her) the heart is considered the empress or emperor
of our bodies and it should be protected at all costs
because love is the purest of sensation for all of us and
ultimately what existence is all about. When you let
someone close enough – chest to chest with each other’s
hearts – it’s a serious energetic exchange, not to be
taken lightly.
And the body reacts as such.
Now, the part of all of this that
wholeheartedly appealed to the cat-lady in me, was when
the article mentioned that all of this can also be
achieved if you snuggle for 20 seconds with an animal.
Our pets are quite similar to us
in numerous ways and making the connection through touch
is definitely one of them. I’ve seen many scared, unsure
animals at the shelter react to a soft, caring touch. It
really can communicate so much.
Each morning when I wake up,
Grayson, one of my newest cats searches me out – usually
in the bathroom – and demands attention.
I scoop him up and hold him, quite
literally like a baby, against my chest and he purrs and
purrs. He will actually tuck his head in under my neck and
close his eyes and truly, if I don’t move we could
probably be there the whole day.
It’s definitely longer than a
20-second hug.
It’s funny, but I find I like
starting my day like that. On the occasion I’m in a hurry
and our morning hug doesn’t happen, I kind of feel like I
missed something. Usually in the evening he’ll come around
and meow and rub against my legs and I’ll tell him, "We
didn’t hug today did we?" And we commence with the
snuggles.
On the mornings when I don’t have
to go to work, he will stomp his way onto the bed, shove
his head under my chin and immediately begin purring and
kneading. It’s possible he might be working this into his
daily routine as well.
It turns out, there could be a
physical, scientific reason these moments mean so much.
We’ve had dogs at the shelter who
would snuggle every moment of the day with us. There are
the ones we affectionately call "the leaners." They have
to be touching you in some way, shape or form and will
often simply lean against you for the contact.
We have a sweet, 4-year-old Shih
Tzu mix who came into us in rough shape. When we got him
shaved down, we discovered he was basically blind. This
little guy is so dear. He doesn’t seem to startle much at
all for not being able to see and he will give kisses. The
most important thing for him, though, is touch. He needs
to have that contact to ground him. He’s such a
sweetheart.
He’s definitely living proof of
how important touch can be.
And here’s the thing. It’s
mutually beneficial. It helps us and it helps our pets.
The love between a human and an animal in my opinion is
some of the purest on the planet. Truly unconditional. As
a result, any moment of touch or hugging would be an
energetic convergence of good will and wonderful feeling
that I bet would top just about any chart.
So if you’re looking to benefit
from the 20-second hug phenomenon, how about taking a
moment without any kind of interruption and searching out
your four-legged friend?
It might be just that extra boost
of oxytocin you need more than you even know.
*****
Jennifer Vanderau is the Director of Communications for the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter in Chambersburg, Pa., and can be reached at cvasoc@innernet.net. The shelter accepts both monetary and pet supply donations. For more information, call the shelter at (717) 263-5791 or visit the website www.cvas-pets.org.
Read other articles by Jennifer Vanderau