Hug Therapy. Dr. Stone Kraushaar
own foal, even in a crowded pen of newborn colts. Mother mice are able to identify their pups in a crowded cage, and if the pup is separated from the mother for a short period of time, upon return, the mother showers her baby with maternal affection by licking its fur.
Have you ever wondered why? Childbirth has been described as the greatest possible pain any human will ever experience. When people have any other pain in their lives, they tend to avoid and run from the negative stimulus as fast as their legs can carry them. What is it, then, that makes a mother immediately forget the pain and suffering (sometimes as long as eighteen to twenty hours of pain)? And I mean immediately. It must be something powerful.
It is. Science has analyzed, examined, and studied this phenomenon for years, and has discovered some amazing things. Although an entire neurological system is working in unison before, during, and after the delivery, the one specific chemical that appears to have the most profound effect is oxytocin.
Oxytocin is a neuropeptide, which simply means it is a natural chemical, a hormone, produced by the hypothalamus in the brain. All scientific data points to oxytocin as the number-one explanation for a mother immediately forgetting that pain. If this hormone can have such an extraordinary effect during childbirth, what effect will it have on our everyday lives?
A well-known study at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill highlighted just how powerful oxytocin can be.1
The research includes studying oxytocin release in married couples and cohabitating adults. For ten minutes, the scientists in the lab ask the couple to spend time holding hands, hugging each other, and reminiscing about pleasurable events in their life, like how they met and how they fell in love. The couples then had their blood drawn for evaluation of oxytocin levels, and filled out a questionnaire. The results were telling—those couples who had higher oxytocin levels had better relationships. Science has begun to realize the valuable benefits of oxytocin. More study is necessary to fully understand the effects, and these studies are ongoing.
The dopamine-response system in the brain, under the influence of oxytocin, controls our ability to perceive pleasure. These neuropeptides, oxytocin and dopamine, have become known as endorphins, or pleasure chemicals. Here are some things we do know about oxytocin and hugs: When we embrace someone, oxytocin is released, and this makes us feel warm and fuzzy. This promotes feelings of devotion, trust, and bonding. The touch also enables the participants to develop a stronger sense of acceptance, and decreases loneliness, isolation, and depression. But it’s more than that—the hug leads to the lowering of one’s blood pressure. This appears to be directly related to improvement, or a decrease, in cortisol, the stress hormone. The same oxytocin effect can happen when you hug or interact with a pet. Besides being at the root of the human-human bond, oxytocin is also instrumental in the positive changes observed in the human-animal bond.
The UNC study results tell us some interesting things about human contact, specifically hugs. When a person experiences the inviting touch of another person, a burst of chemicals fills the brain with a wave of warmth. Oxytocin is released, and the pleasure receptors are bathed in pleasure chemicals.
What does this mean for the science behind the hug? Everything. It brings our emotional self in line with our physical self. Science provides the validation that something pleasing has occurred. And it’s even more profound than that, although there is some controversy on whether how the duration of the hug determines how much oxytocin is released, with some scientists claiming a twenty-second hug is needed for any oxytocin release. Recent studies raise the possibility that oxytocin release starts seconds before humans’ exchange contact. Just thinking about a hug may have a similar, if not identical, effect as the actual thing.
Remember the phrase “an apple a day keeps the doctor away?” Medical professionals have analyzed this statement from various angles. What if we changed it to “a hug a day”? Interestingly, a new study at Carnegie Mellon University, involving 404 healthy adults, studied the effect of a hug on their overall susceptibility to developing the common cold after being exposed to the rhinovirus.2
People who perceived greater social support from hugging showed a 32 percent decreased risk in developing the common cold. And even those who developed a cold experienced less pronounced symptoms, if they perceived a positive benefit from hugging, and received more frequent hugs. It appears that hugging protects people who are under stress from the increased risks for colds usually associated with stress. Hugging is a marker of intimacy, and helps generate the feeling that others are there to help in the face of adversity. Psychologists have described hugging as follows: hugs surround the recipient with a “force field,” or an invisible armor that gives the person a psychological feeling of safety and security.3 4
What’s more telling is what is exactly happening at the physiological level. When the person receives the hug, touch, or human contact, this stimulates pressure receptors under your skin in a way that leads to a cascade of events, including an increase in vagal activity. Specifically, stimulation of the vagus nerve triggers the hypothalamus to release oxytocin. The increase in oxytocin levels in the bloodstream creates a domino effect in which the adrenal glands inhibit or decrease the amount of cortisol and norepinephrine in the bloodstream. These effects place you in a relaxed, contented, and secure state. Another related study from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill studied postpartum mothers. They found that higher oxytocin levels were associated with lower cardiovascular and sympathetic-nervous reactivity to stress.5
Indeed, a hug a day—especially a twenty-one-second hug—may very well keep the doctor away.6
What could this mean for long-term treatment of stroke victims during their physical rehabilitation, situational or even chronically depressed patients and their daily medical regimen? Could frequent hugs, or so many quality hugs a day, be prescribed as part of their medical therapy? Why not include a prescription that states, “Three twenty-one-second hugs a day, every day”? And for stressful conditions, add a fourth thirty-second hug when needed. Why not? There’s enough physical evidence to suggest hugs provide the recipient with measurable and reproducible benefits.
The scientific community hopes that anxiety patients may be helped more quickly with the aid of oxytocin. Oxytocin would have a positive effect on the patient’s perception of fear. It would aid in bonding between therapist and subject, suggesting a heightened increase in success of treatment. Oxytocin could become an alternative to standard anxiolytics like lorazepam or diazepam, but with a much more natural approach, and less risk of side effects. More clinical studies are needed, but early results suggest there is reason for much optimism. Oxytocin may change how we look at and treat anxiety in the future. The possibilities are virtually endless, or at least that’s how it seems now.
We see anecdotal examples every day. “When I come home, my daughter will run to the door and give me a big hug, and every stress that happened that day just melts away.” I doubt this father knew much about science, or that he understands the oxytocin effect behind this display of love and affection, but his statement speaks to the depth of his grasp of the hidden benefits behind his daughter’s hug. If hugs can have this level of influence on our daily lives, shouldn’t we incorporate human contact into our daily activities? I suspect we would all be much better for it as individuals, as families, and as fellow citizens of the world. If someone important has passed on from this world, what would you give to have the chance to hug them once more? Don’t be afraid to touch your loved ones—your health and well-being may depend on it.
The Benefits of Hugging from The Hug Store
1.Reduces stress, worry, and anxiety
2.Increases calmness
3.Reduces production of cortisol (the stress hormone)
4.Enhances bonding differently than language alone
5.Lowers levels of emotional and physical pain
6.Increases compassion and understanding
7.Relieves depression
8.Elevates mood
9.Boosts and enhances the immune system
10.Relaxes muscles in the body
11.Lowers