The One Thing Couples Should Do More Of Together
It’s Valentine’s Day, the day of romance for romantics. The is one thing that couples should do more of together and not just today. No, it’s not as salacious as you might think and it’s something that couples can do everyday and pretty much anywhere. You can do it walking down the street. It can be done while your driving or sitting and watching a movie or television. This activity requires no stress and best of all, it’s free to do.
Whether you think it’s romantic or cheesy, holding hands serves an important purpose for our mental health, experts have claimed. The act of clasping fingers with a romantic interest dampens down ‘threat’ signals sent by the brain when we sense we are alone.
According to James Coan, a psychologist at the University of Virginia, ‘to the human brain, the world presents a series of problems to solve.
‘And it turns out being alone is a problem.’
Hand-holding is a crucial part of human bonding that babies instinctively do when new mothers touch their palms.
According to the Daily Mail…The hands are loaded with sensitive nerve fibers that connect to the vagus nerve in the brain – the epicenter of our parasympathetic nervous system. This system oversees a vast array of crucial bodily functions, including control of mood, immune response, digestion, and heart rate.
Physical touch in the form of hand-holding, hugging and cuddling also prompts the release of feel-good chemicals in the brain, like oxytocin and serotonin, that help people feel bonded to one another.
In one study involving 16 married women who were told they would receive an electric shock, those who held a stranger’s hand saw a reduction in the brain’s threat response according to scans.
The sense of relief was even greater when the women held the hands of their husbands.The happier the couples said they were in their relationships, the more their partner’s hand dampened the brain’s response to the shock.
Holding hands is not just for Valentine’s Day
So, remember, if you are close enough to you significant other than you’re close enough to hold their hand and get some of that precious oxytocin released.
