Corona Daily 381: Cuddle Puddles

Since 2004, when two relationship coaches founded a Cuddle Party in New York, professional cuddlers and cuddling organizations have been doing good business. Cuddle parties also known as cuddle puddles or snuggle parties have girls and guys cuddling together for extended times. Usually written consent is essential before a session starts. Everyone must be fully clothed. No sexual touching is allowed. (There are other parties and clubs for that).

Cuddling allows our bodies to release a hormone called oxytocin. That in turn helps reduce blood pressure. In the absence of physical contact, people may experience loneliness, depression, anxiety disorders and stress.

Social distancing is the enemy of cuddling. Lockdowns have presumably locked down the oxytocin within us, raising our blood pressure. Cuddle parties have stopped. Now professional cuddlers are trying to arrange virtual cuddling sessions. Cuddle Sanctuary will run a virtual cuddling workshop on 30 July. Its certified professional cuddlers normally charge $80- $100 per hour for one-on-one cuddle sessions. Now they are training their clients to simulate an embrace on Zoom. Franzblau, Cuddle Sanctuary’s founder, asks clients to lie on their side with one arm stretched under their head and the other near torso. In that position, clients are requested to recall a pleasant cuddle from the past. Some cuddlers are suggesting an eye-to-eye contact on the screen. If done deeply, the eye cuddle may create an emotional togetherness to a level where oxytocin is released.

The benefits of virtual cuddling are unknown, but Cuddle up to me, Cuddlist, Lovedome, Cuddleparty are trying to make the most by charging clients in these pandemic times.  

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In Israel, the Apollonia national park has advised people to cuddle trees. Trees after all are living organisms. The park now arranges daily tours for tree-huggers, giving the word a new positive meaning.

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A group of psychotherapists conducted a study in June to find out whether sleeping in a cuddled state has any benefits. They took a dozen couples, and asked them to sleep together for a few nights, and alone for a few. Both times, through attached censors, they were subjected to polysomnography. The study found that co-sleeping allowed 10% more REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. REM is the part of our sleep where we dream. Sharing a bed improves sleep for both partners, according to the study.

My one concern with the study is that all selected couples were in an age group 18-29. What happens to older couples? I remember reading somewhere that in Buckingham palace nobody shares a bed. They visit the room of their spouse when required, but return to their own room to sleep. I wonder if Prince Charles has any problems with his REM sleep.

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One practical and useful invention of the pandemic is the Cuddle Curtains. They are essentially plastic sheets with armholes. Usually made from shower curtains, the lockdown-friendly cuddle curtains are fast gaining popularity in Europe. Particularly in nursing homes. A British plasterer Anthony Cauvin uploaded a clip showing him hugging his grandmother on Youtube.  A social media sensation, the touching video got more than eleven million views in the first week.

Ravi