Believe it or not for all of you huggers out there, there are actually some people in the world that are so wrapped up in themselves that they really don’t like give or receive hugs unless it is for some selfish reason.  I don’t know why.  It really defies my understanding of what life is all about, but just the same, it happens.   For all of your other rogue members of society, I implore you – learn how to give a hug and change the world around you.

If you have found this article as a result of wanting to learn how to hug someone appropriately, you might find some of this information helpful.  At the very core of a hug itself, there is a basic human need for physical touch.  Scientific research has showed a direct correlation between the amount of physical touch and one’s mental and physical well-being; and, hugging people is one of the best non-threatening ways to give physical touch in a healthy way.  Hugs, like that of a genuine smile towards someone, is as powerful a remedy of sadness or gloom as anything else one can give away for free to anyone where there is no cost to the giver of it.  If anything, when given appropriately and with the right motives, a hug can change the entire day in the life of someone who is struggling, in the same way a smile can. BUT WOW!  Imagine a day when you are feeling really beaten up by the world, alone, or unappreciated, and someone comes up to you with a smile on their face and gives you a big sincere hug! It can change your whole perspective on the day if you receive it!  Right?

Of course, there is a right way and a wrong way to hug people.  Knowing this is not rocket science.  Most people can sense the motive behind most hugs or the sincerity of them, so having the right motive in hugging people is really the main thing to consider.  Do you hug someone out of a lustful or selfish desire to fulfill your own needs?  Only you can be the one to say if this is your motive, but rest assured, most people, especially those of the opposite sex can sense the motive and nature of the individual giving the hug.  This fear can lead to people even regulating hugs! Crazy as this sounds, in certain circles of society where any physical contact with the opposite sex is questionable, you might be taught that any sort of frontal contact with the opposite sex while hugging is wrong.  I will let God be the judge of that. Personally, there is no where in Scripture that indicates that, i.e. how to appropriately hug someone of the opposite sex.

When you hug out of a great desire to show others – speaking of adults – that they are valued and respected, and appreciated, they feel it!  Children in general love to be hugged unless the person hugging them has been physically abusive to them in some way.  Children NEED hugs – lots of hugs – healthy appropriate hugs – that give them a sense of belonging, of being cared about and protected.  In a world that is filled with so much stress and conflict, pain and suffering, humans often put up walls of protection to shield them from this pain – a sort of emotional barrier.  This is especially true in those who suffer traumatic experiences in their lives.  One of the first things to go in a person’s life when emotionally stressful things happen is their willingness to hug or to be hugged.  It is one of the ways they detach from the world around them – a sort of self-preservation mode.

Jesus gave hugs to men and women as if they were long lost friends.  He embraced everyone with the same intensity, and the same heart – one of true love, caring, and compassion.  I’m not dissing these groups that have rules on what is appropriate and what is not, but I really do find that they often overstep their bounds in regulating love and the motives of peoples’ hearts in hugging.  For me personally, I say hug everyone as if they are a long lost friend or family member!   Embrace everyone with the greatest respect and admiration for their existence in the knowledge that God created them with as much care and as much love as they did you.

If you do hug people, I encourage you to look within and check your motives in giving hugs to people – especially those of the opposite sex.  Above all, find a reason that is not self-centered or self-promoting.  When you find a reason or motive to hug that is not self-promoting or self-centered, you will begin to change the world around you one life at a time.  Everyone needs healthy physical contact.  We are hard wired for it.  Hugging someone can be a powerful way to bring healing, comfort, hope and encouragement to them.  If you are not prone to hugging others, learn how to give a hug and change the world around you.  Most of all though, if you do, it will radically change your life in the process.

Here is a video that really caught my attention.  As simple as the idea was, it is revolutionary in today’s busy, impersonal and suspicious world.  Honestly, at first I thought it a hoax and that it was all staged.  I have come to learn that it is actually a real event that has started a worldwide movement – a movement to hug people!  Enjoy!

XXX

If you are inspired by this video as most, chances are you will end up hugging a few more people than you might have in the coming days.  We applaud you!  Who have you hugged today?  Who will you hug today?  And, why those hugs be for all the right reasons that leave someone enriched and with a sense of gratitude that you reached out to them and encouraged them.