A week ago I was going downtown to meet with my HR team. When I got off of the skytrain at Vancouver City Centre there were 3 people holding free hugs signs. I had completely forgotten about the 2007 Free Hugs Campaign that was started in Australia.
I’m not really a touchy-feely person but I like the overall message of the Free Hugs Campaign. Brighten your day and the day of someone else by sharing a hug and a smile. When I came out of the skytrain station my first instinct was to avoid the huggers. But I decided to engage in a little experiment – what if I let my guard down for just a second and hugged one of these strangers? I changed my course and walked toward the nearest hugger.
“Free Hug?” she asked.
I shrugged, “why not?” I was surprised to find that hugging even a complete stranger made a difference in my day.
Before the hug I was feeling stressed out as I had 2 major projects due and a workshop to present in the next 45 hours. After the hug I felt better, like I would be able to complete all my tasks. I thanked the stranger, wished her a pleasant evening and walked down Granville St.
A 5 second connection with a complete stranger had a very positive affect on me. I performed a search through Google and discovered that the hormone oxytocin is released during hugs. A hormone is a chemical messenger that controls and regulates the functions of cell and organs. Oxytocin is known as the “bonding” hormone – it is released during social and physical contact.
My point is this: connect with people in a positive way, a stranger, a friend, your dad, anyone you can even for 5 seconds. It will help you and it will help them.
If you’d like to check out the Free Hugs Campaign or read about the psychology of hugs the links are below.
http://www.freehugscampaign.org/index.php?categoryid=1
http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/07/26/how_hugs_are_proven_to_help_your_health_have_you_been_hugged_today.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment