15 minutes | Sunday, October 6, 2019
This podcast claims that Hugs heal. You know how good a good hug feels. When you're down, and somebody comes along, puts a couple of warm arms around you, and gives you a squeeze and a smile...you start to want to smile right back...and you really mean that returning smile, no matter how down you just felt. It's a natural reaction. And GIVING somebody a hug is a great way to share some of the smile that you feel happy-ing inside you.
Check out what happens in a baseball dugout when somebody hits a walk off grand slam home run. In fact, according to a just released Carnegie Mellon University study, a twenty second hug actually reduces the harmful, physical effects of stress, including its impact on your blood pressure and heart rate. That's because prolonged hugging releases oxytocin, which is a powerful feel good hormone in the brain.
Hugs heal. And right now maybe we all need some hugging. There are some therapists who claim to be hugging experts. When somebody claims he's an expert, a big Dong goes off in my head. Look at the word. Ex means that something that was, isn't any more. An ex husband for example. And pert is something that could be called "Cute" by people who can use that word better than I can. So when you put the ex together with the pert, you get something that was...but no longer...is...cute. Wonderful.