Global Hug Your Kids Day - July 15th
Global Hug Your Kids Day is celebrated on the third Monday of every July, which is July 15 this year.
Hugging as a sign of affection has likely been a cultural and familial custom for thousands of years, probably since humanity began. It may have started as a way to share warmth. Though it also seems to be an innate action as a way to bring comfort.
Hug Your Kids
Of course, the most specific way to celebrate this day is for parents to make sure that they give their kids an extra hug in honor of Global Hug Your Kids Day. Even better, this is a great time to create an intentional habit of not only hugging, but just generally appreciating kids.
Even when they are difficult or cause parents some headaches, kids are a gift and a blessing to families. So check in with your kid or teenager and give them a hug to let them know how loved they are!
Most people aren’t aware of how healthy hugs are! Global Hug Your Kids Day is a great time to remind ourselves (and share with others) the way that hugs can benefit the body, the mind, and our souls.
Benefits of hugs for mental health:
In a world where even young kids can be filled with anxiety about school, peer pressure and other problems in the world, spending 10 seconds or more giving them a simple hug can help to minimize their stress - and yours as well - Studies show that hugging can improve mental health in several ways - regardless of the fact that you are no kid anymore ...
- Makes you happier: The hormone oxytocin, which is released during hugs, is associated with feelings of happiness and lower stress, especially in women who have strong relationships and hug often.
- Makes you feel good: Offering a sense of wellness, safety and security, hugs can reduce anxiety and depression and increase dopamine, which is the hormone that makes people feel good.
- Lowers stress: Hugs help to reduce stress by providing a physical expression of support, for both the person giving and receiving the hug.
- Protects against illness: The lower stress levels that come with hugs can help to strengthen the immune system, making people less likely to get sick and can help those who are already sick feel better.
- Improves heart health: Loving relationships that involve a lot of hugs are linked to better heart health, as shown by lower blood pressure and slower heart rates. With the power to reduce blood pressure as well as providing a dose of oxytocin (the love hormone), hugs can help to maintain a healthy heart.
- Reduces anxiety: Touch in general, including hugs, can help lower anxiety in people with low self-esteem and can keep people from isolating themselves when they're reminded of death.
- Helps manage pain: Hugs and other forms of therapeutic touch have been found to help reduce pain, providing a more holistic approach to pain management.
In a world driven by virtual things and technological advances and an increasingly isolated lifestyle, the 'ancient and archaic' practice of hugging is turning out as a potent elixir for our well-being.
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