How To Cuddle: The Benefits of Cuddling

Cuddling is one of the simplest delights in this life. Whether you are cuddling with your favorite blanket and a great movie, snuggling with a pet, holding your newborn baby, or cozied up with your new beau. Cuddling is a great way to slow down the clock and really enjoy life for a moment or two.

There are loads of extra benefits to cuddling that is great for your physical and mental health. It is also a great activity to do right before bed. Keep reading to learn more about the benefits of cuddling along with our top tips on how to cuddle.

Health Benefits to Cuddling:

• Relieves Stress
• Lowers Anxiety
• Induces Sleep
• Lowers Pain
• Increases Bond Between People
• Lowers Blood Pressure
• Reduces Risk of Heart Disease
• Immune System Booster
• Releases Oxytocin

 

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Oxytocin AKA the Cuddle Hormone

No post on cuddling would be complete without talking about the star of the show, oxytocin.

It is a hormone that is released into our system and makes us feel the bubbly, snuggly, happy feelings of love. It is one of the main reasons behind all of the many benefits of cuddling.

It helps to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety, and it can even increase the bond between people. It is also the main reasons why cuddling can help you fall asleep. Keep reading to learn more about how to cuddle for the best results.

How to Cuddle for Stress Relief

One of the best ways to reduce stress is to cuddle. Most cuddling, whether done on your own or with someone you love, is going to help reduce your stress. But there are a few ways you can increase stress release during a cuddle.

Start by laying on your side curled up a bit, like in the fetal position. Then have your loved one hold you, being rocked gently and slowly back and forth can also relieve anxiety, and stress.

Once you begin to feel more comfortable, try and release tension in your body and stretch out. By stretching out it will encourage your muscle to begin to relax more.

Struggling to sleep with stress? Then you will love our post Stress Free Nightly Routine.

Great Cuddles for Couples

Cuddling is a huge bonding experience for humans, especially in romantic relationships. For couples, not only are you getting all of the many benefits for stress relief and sleep.

You also get the added bonding affects of snuggling with a romantic partner. Often cuddling can increase sex drive as well. As oxytocin is released during cuddles, this increases the connection and love between you both. The following are a few great cuddle positions for couples.

Spooning

If you haven’t been a big spoon or little spoon before, have you even snuggled? Spooning is a classic snuggle position for a reason. It allows you both to curl up on your sides which is a preferred laying position for most people.

You also get to snuggle incredibly close to one another, fitting together like two puzzle pieces. Don’t forget that even if you are normally the big spoon, that switching to be the little spoon can be just as fulfilling.

The Sweetheart Cradle

While this one has a fancy name, it is a go to cuddle position. One person lays on their back, while the other curls up next to them and lays their head on the other’s shoulder.

This is a great cuddle for snuggling up on the couch to watch a movie.

The Honeymoon Hug

In this adorable snuggle, you both lay on your side and face one another. You can lay like this and hold hands and look deep into each other’s eyes as you talk. Or you can wrap your arms around one another for an extra romantic hug.

Is your love life booming? Is your mattress letting you down? Well then you need to check out our list for Best Mattresses for the Best Sex and never get let down by your mattress again.

How to Cuddle While Single

Our first tip for snuggly singles is to remember that there is such a thing as plutonic. However, if you’re home alone and craving a good cuddle, we have got you covered. Cuddling is all about getting cozy, the first step is to get on your favorite cozy clothes, there is no reason to wear anything uncomfortable during a cuddle.

Next, gather up some pillows and blankets. Body pillows, heated blankets, and weighted blankets are our favorite snuggle equipment. Body pillows give you that full body cuddle support. While a weighted blanket provides pressure. We are talking about that good pressure, similar to the feeling of a full body tight hug. It helps release oxytocin, otherwise known as the cuddle hormone.

Click the link to learn more about the many benefits to using weighted blankets.

How to Cuddle for Better Sleep

The truth is that just about any kind of snuggles are going to be great for improving your sleep. Not only dos the comfort, lower stress, pain relief, and so on help you get to sleep more quickly. It can also increase the quality of your sleep throughout the night.

High stress levels or pain can cause a lot of disruptions in sleep throughout the evening. If you lower your stress and pain before falling asleep it decreases to intensity and frequency of theses kinds of sleep interruptions.

Cuddling Your Kids

We could go on for ages rattling on about the many benefits there are to cuddling with your kids. From newborn babies to teenagers, the nurturing and loving touch of a parents means the world. Whether your are soothing a crying baby, kissing bruised knees, or hugging a grumpy teenager, these physical displays of affection can mean a lot and help with a child’s development.

Cuddling as a family is a great way to bond together. Get everyone on the couch and snuggle up for a movie. It is a great way to spend time together.

Cuddling Your Pets

Pets often make fabulous cuddle companions. They love to snuggle up with their owners to stay warm and get in a few pets.

If you do not allow your pet on the furniture, we suggest making time to get down on their level and really enjoy a good snuggle session. It really is worth getting covered in fur.

While many pets love a good cuddle, of course you should always listen to their signals and not force them into any hugs or cuddles that they don’t want. Cat lovers will know what we are talking about here, give them space when they want/need it.

Get our top tips on how to sleep next to your fluffy friends in our post: Sleeping With Your Dog

Professional Cuddlers:

Since this is a rather new concept, it naturally makes a lot of people feel rather uncomfortable with the idea of someone who cuddles clients in order to help relieve their stress and anxiety. However, it can be a very beneficial practice for those who need it. We suggest thinking of it as seeing a massage therapist. (Getting a massage often requires clothing to be removed and naturally a rather intimate interaction, yet professionals manage to do their job without crossing boundaries and giving their clients a service, they need.)

Professional cuddlers work with you to create boundaries and make you feel as comfortable as possible. They can be used to help people through intimacy issues, as well as provide a safe space dedicated to relieving stress.

Time To Get Your Cuddle On:

Love is such a beautiful thing and comes in many different forms. Whether it is the love for your pet, child, friend, or spouse, a good cuddle can be a great addition to your relationship. It can be sweet and wholesome, or romantic. Always be sure to use proper consent and enjoy. A great cuddle can do fabulous things for your relationships, sleep, and overall health/wellbeing. We hope our tips and tricks help you to find new and better ways to cuddle.

Do you have a favorite cuddling position that is missing from our list? Let us know! Contact us with any questions or suggestions.