National Hugging day was started in Clio, Michigan in 1986. This feels like a fun and strange coincidence because I was born and raised in Michigan. I spent nearly 40 years in evidently,  the national hub of hugging.

Now, I have the honor of teaching people of all ages how to hug themselves in my yoga classes but also through my children’s book, Violet the Hugging Octopus. I am a peddler of hugs, a positivity junkie.

There are many benefits of hugging

Hugging raises our self esteem, lowers our feelings of anxiety and teaches us how to self soothe. It is readily available, affordably priced and free from all known side effects.

Hugging deserves to be celebrated and so do you.

I found more information about the benefits of hugging and about National Hugging Day below on NationalToday.com. I love their ideas, totally agree and am happy to share.  Enjoy!

Why We Love National Hugging Day,  from National Today

• Hugging builds trust
  The nurturing touch of a hug builds trust and a sense of safety. This helps with open and honest communication. Hugs instantly help increase oxytocin levels, which heal and combat feelings of loneliness, isolation, and anger. We can all take a lesson from this: next time, when you feel like fighting with your significant other, stop … and give your significant other a hug instead. It will give you time to calm down and remind you two of your close connection.
• Hugging is healthy
  Hugs strengthen the immune system. The gentle pressure on the sternum creates an emotional charge that activates the solar plexus chakra. This in turn stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body’s production of white blood cells. Hugs also affect the nervous system. The galvanic skin response of someone receiving and giving a hug suggests a more balanced state in the nervous system post-hug. What does this all mean in English? It just means that hugs are good for you! They’re good for your emotional state, but they’re also good for your physical body. One might even say that hugs are the best medicine! (That being said, if you get sick, please go to a doctor. We’re not joking.)
• Hugs may alleviate our fears
  Scientists found that hugging — even if it was just an inanimate object like a teddy bear — helps soothe individuals’ existential fears. Interpersonal touch is such a powerful mechanism that even objects that can simulate touch by another person help instill a sense of existential significance. If you think about it, you’ll understand why: it doesn’t matter if we’re a tiny speck in the universe as long as you’re loved.

Now, this sure is a tradition that I can get my arms around!  Happy National Hugging Day dear friends.  –Sherry

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