A question
Why does a hug make you feel calmer?
A calm, true answer. Then, if the wondering keeps going, the whole episode.
The short answer
Because gentle, steady pressure tells your body it is safe. Kind touch releases oxytocin, a chemical messenger that quiets the parts of the brain that watch for danger.
There is something else, too. Sitting close to someone calm can slow your own heart, until the two of you are more or less keeping time together. Calm turns out to be contagious.
Go deeper tonight
Friendship: The Science of Closeness
The full episode, in one calm voice, with nothing that startles.
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8:32
Sleep timer
Read the guide for this one in the morning.
This connects to
One idea turns up in many different nights. Follow one and the library starts to join up.
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