Hugging

Hugging is good medicine. It transfers energy, and gives the person hugged an emotional boost. You need four hugs a day for survival, eight for maintenance, and twelve for growth. A hug makes you feel good. The skin is the largest organ we have and it needs a great deal of care. A hug can cover a lot of skin and gives the message that you care. It is also a form of communication. It can say things you don't have words for. The nicest thing about a hug is that you usually can't give one without getting one.~ Author Unknown

Hugging and touching are essential for good health and happiness. When skin is stimulated through touch, it releases an abundance of healing chemicals that have health-promoting effects on the body and mind. Regular massage therapy detoxify the body's tissues and calm the mind which enhances immune function. If you haven't been hugged or touched lately, then hug yourself. Self-massage has the same healing benefits. Consider performing a daily massage with Sesame Oil to ground the Vata energy on your skin and promote, not only skin health, but emotional health as well.

FROM "The Hug Therapy Book" by Kathleen Keating Schloessinger.

In a world that has grown more complicated, more fierce in the demands made upon our hearts and pocket books, there is one easy, free gift left. The power of touch. Don’t turn away from the elderly, disabled, terminally ill or long term care residents because their needs seem beyond your ability to give. The one thing they need the most is the most simple, yet profound gift you have to give. Your kind hand holding theirs and a hug from your heart. The gift of touch is the most powerful healing you can offer another, and it is the most powerful healing you can give yourself. Give generously and watch yourself grow rich in what matters the most. Hug often, hug well... I embrace your spirit.