Some people are huggers, other people… not so much.
If you totally recoil the moment someone even attempts to put their arms around you and give you a squeeze, well you’re not alone.
Many people hate hugging, but unfortunately most of the time you just have to roll with it no matter how much you wish to avoid it. Shit buzz, but what can you do.
However, if you always wondered why you hate hugging, it turns out there might be a scientific reason for it.
Professor of counselling at Northern Illinois University, Suzanne Degges-White, said: “Our tendency to engage in physical touch—whether hugging, a pat on the back, or linking arms with a friend—is often a product of our early childhood experiences.”
A study from 2012 supports that view, saying that if a child was never hugged in the early stages of their life, they find it awkward or sometimes, inappropriate, to hug as an adult.
Suzanne continues: “In a family that was not typically physically demonstrative, children may grow up and follow that same pattern with their own kids.
“Some children grow up and feel ‘starved’ for touch and become social huggers that can’t greet a friend without an embrace or a touch on the shoulder.”
What do you think? Are you a hugger?
