I want to give you a "HUG" AND now I know why!!!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE HUGS! It makes me feel exceptionally good inside. Whenever I write a note I always put hugs, Dolly. I don't care if I just met you hugs is my signature. Why you say? Well, I think it's time you know the true meaning of a "HUG"!

So I found this article, and when I read it I said to myself, "Did someone jump inside my head and pull a bunch of stuff out and put it on paper"? Well, here what it says!

Hugging (and also laughter) is extremely effective at healing sickness, disease, loneliness, depression, anxiety and stress.

Research shows a proper deep hug, where the hearts are pressing together, can benefit you in these ways:

1. The nurturing touch of a hug builds trust and a sense of safety. This helps with open and honest communication.

2. Hugs can instantly boost oxytocin levels, which heal feelings of loneliness, isolation, and anger.

3. Holding a hug for an extended time lifts one's serotonin levels, elevating mood and creating happiness.

4. Hugs strengthen the immune system. The gentle pressure on the sternum and the emotional charge this creates activates the Solar Plexus Chakra. This stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body's production of white blood cells, which keep you healthy and disease free.

5. Hugging boosts self-esteem. From the time we're born our family's touch shows us that we're loved and special. The associations of self-worth and tactile sensations from our early years are still imbedded in our nervous system as adults. The cuddles we received from our Mom and Dad while growing up remain imprinted at a cellular level, and hugs remind us at a somatic level of that. Hugs, therefore, connect us to our ability to self love.

6. Hugging relaxes muscles. Hugs release tension in the body. Hugs can take away pain; they soothe aches by increasing circulation into the soft tissues. (i likes that one a lot ~hehehe~)

7. Hugs balance out the nervous system. The galvanic skin response of someone receiving and giving a hug shows a change in skin conductance. The effect in moisture and electricity in the skin suggests a more balanced state in the nervous system - parasympathetic.

8. Hugs teach us how to give and receive. There is equal value in receiving and being receptive to warmth, as to giving and sharing. Hugs educate us how love flows both ways.

9. Hugs are so much like meditation and laughter. They teach us to let go and be present in the moment. They encourage us to flow with the energy of life. Hugs get you out of your circular thinking patterns and connect you with your heart and your feelings and your breath.

10. The energy exchange between the people hugging is an investment in the relationship. It encourages empathy and understanding. And, it's synergistic, which means the whole is more than the sum of its parts: 1 1 = 3 or more! This synergy is more likely to result in win-win outcomes.

From my family (me & my two girls taken last year at one of Dave's gigs) to yours... HUG!!! Did you ever notice in pictures what do people do to pose??? HUG!!!

There is a saying by Virginia Satir, a respected family therapist, “We need four hugs a day for survival. We need eight hugs a day for maintenance. We need twelve hugs a day for growth.” Eight or more might seem quite high, but while researching and writing this article I asked my child, “How many hugs a day do you like?” She said, “I'm not going to tell you how many I like, but it's way more than eight.” That really made me smile and touched my heart. And, I realized how organic and deep the need for hugs is.

What do all these pictures have in common????   HUGGING!   Go look at your pictures right now and go see if 9 out of 10 of those pictures if there's more than one person they're hugging to pose!!!  So there ya have it!  When someone writes Hugs, NAME... IT'S ALSO... wishing you well, and I want to help with a HUG!  So it you're not doing anything right now and someone else is in the house get up and go give them hug, and when they say what was that for you just tell them... "... just because I care".

 

AND YOU THOUGHT I WAS BEING MUSHY!!! LOL