The Benefit of Hugs

Yes You Can by Jean Walters
The Benefit of Hugs

Perhaps you were not raised in an affectionate family and hugging may seem foreign. If so, it is time to reconsider the value of a hug. There is a story that makes this point perfectly.
It is about a set of premature twins who were parted after birth and placed in separate incubators. One twin was not doing well and wasn’t expected to live. Fortunately, a nurse in the pre-me nursery decided to break the hospital rules and reunited the two babies by placing them together in one incubator. Once they were together the healthier baby threw her arm around her sister. It seemed to be a heartwarming embrace. The result was the smaller, weaker twin’s heart rate got stronger and stabilized and her temperature rose to normal. These dramatic changes illustrated the power of a hug.
We’ve often heard, and possibly suspected, that babies need to be cuddled in order to survive. What we may not have considered is that all people require warmth, nurturing and compassion. All these qualities transfer through a hug.
To prove these results for yourself I suggest an experiment. Start your research by giving hugs. Let’s say you set an arbitrary limit of five hugs a day. Everyday give away at least five genuine, heartfelt hugs. If things go well, and you find yourself enjoying your research, you might want to raise the limit. Notice, for example, if your health and/or mood improves. Notice also if the recipient’s expression changes when they are hugged. If results warrant, you might incorporate hugging as a daily ritual or new behavior in your life. Hugging could be viewed as a proactive method to improve health and well-being.!! By Jove, this experiment could change your life.
Here is what Anonymous has to say about hugging. “Hugging is good medicine. It transfers energy and give 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. As the skin is our largest organ, it requires a great deal of care. A hug covers lots of skin and gives the message that you care. The nicest thing about a hug is that you usually can’t give one without getting one.”
Jean Walters is a St. Louis based Personal Growth Consultant and Coach specializing in individual empowerment. You can reach her at 314 991 8439 or jean@spiritualtransformation.com

Yes You Can

Scientists in the sixties were monitoring monkeys on a remote Japanese island. The monkeys were cleaning sand off sweet potatoes by washing them in a stream. When the number of monkeys doing this particular activity reached critical mass, primates on another island began doing the same thing. the second group had never seen the first group of monkeys but they began washing their sweet potatoes in identical ways.

Ken Keys, Jr, author of Handbook for Higher Consciousness, took this study as a metaphor for an individual's personal responsibility to "think peace." "You never know if you might be th4 hundredth monkey exploding the common consciousness into mass understanding."

Along the same lines, Quantum Physicist, in their investigation of the Universe, have determined that there is energy in all things, including thought. On a personal level we know this because we can feel it. People who think negative thoughts and continually worry, feel heavy. While those who look on the bright side
and speak in positive terms and expectaions, emanate positive (lighter) energy.

You can experiment with this concept yourself. Notice how you feel when you complain, gossip, or ruminate on how bad things are in the world. Contrarily, observe your feelings when you give positive acknowledgement and genuine appreciation to someone. You willnotice huge differences in the way you feel and your emotional state.

Then expand this exercise and ocmmit to staying positive for a whole day. If the Universe operates from a cause-effect basis as scientist confirm, you have just altered the energy in your thinking and therefore in your life. You should be able to observe different outcomes as well, For instance, you might enjoy your work more or find the people in your life more amenable. It works like this: negative thinking, opinio, sna judgments = heavy, negative results. Postitive thinking and genuine appreciation = lighter, morejoyful results. Try it! Notice what happens!

Eckhart Tolle, author of The New Earth, states that all possibilities are present at every moment but we are only able to perceive the possibilities that match our energy (heavy or light, negative or positive.)

The other part of this is that we have a choice. With dedication and personal discipline, we can change the way we perceive circumstances. We can actually choose to see goodness.

Getting backto the monkeys on the island...essentially we are the monkeys. One person thinks about peace, becomes peaceful, refuses to engage in violence or watch it (TV, movies, games or the news), gives up gossip,yields the roadway to the hurried drivers, accepts people as theya re, and he starts a chain reaction. Thismoves to the next person, who chooses peace and then the next person. Pretty soon we reach critical mass and all the monkeys (people) on all the other islands (countries) desire and choose peace as well.

I know what you're thinking, it can't be that easy. Well,what if it is? Let's try it an dfind out. Are you ready?

Yes You Can

Yes You Can by Jean Walters

Scientists in the sicties were monitoring monkeys on a remote Japanese island. The monnkeys were cleaning sand off sweet potatoes by washin them in a stream. When thenumber ofmonkeys doing this particular activity reached critical mass, primates on another island began doing the same thing. The seocnd group had never seen the first group of monkeys but they began washing their sweet potatoes in identical ways.