Holding Hands for Stress Relief

Holding Hands

I subscribe to a newsletter that gives little “bites” of health articles. All of the infertility and fertility bites, I send along to this blog and comment on my experience with them. This article has more to do with one of the benefits of being in a couple. I figured since the majority of us are in a relationship at the time that we are building our families, that this might be helpful. And the information here could also be used during treatments for infertility.

In an American study at the University of Virginia researchers found that women had an immediate and marked stress reduction response after taking hold of their loved one’s hand. The women’s responses were measured with an MRI. The participants were confronted with stressful information or a threatening situation. Their stress markers were measured before, initiating and during the hand holding.

The use of a stranger’s hand did not produce the same results. In fact there was little or no reduction. So, for those of us undergoing stressful procedures bringing along our loved one’s hand is an activity for self care.

The article also brings up that some of us have trouble with holding hands. We may feel that it has become routine with our spouse. Or that we are uncomfortable with public displays of affection. With this study we are encouraged to do it more often. We seem to like it!

from www.lyrics.com

Oh please, say to me
You’ll let me be your man
And please, say to me
You’ll let me hold your hand.
You’ll let me hold your hand,
I wanna hold your hand.

And when I touch you I feel happy inside.
It’s such a feeling that my love
I can’t hide, I can’t hide, I can’t hide

Lyrics by John Lennon

Related posts:

1. Early Pregnancy Stress Raises Miscarriages
2. Reducing Stress During Fertility Treatment
3. Friends as Free Stress Reduction
4. STRESS Can Wear You Down–Literally! (II)
5. Marital Stress

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 16th, 2007 at 12:33 pm and is filed under Stress. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.