Press Release Summary = Everyone likes to be hugged and cuddled. We all love the idea of having someone wrap their arms around us, pull us close, and give us a big squeeze or affectionate pat. Or so we say. In fact, while we all talk about the pleasure of hugs, when it comes down to it, millions of Americans start to squirm and began looking for excuses to avoid being hugged and end up feeling lonely and unloved instead of enjoying contact with another person.
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\"I\'ve met lots of people who say they want to be hugged and cuddled more by their mate,\" says Andrea Rains Waggener, author of Alternate Beauty (Bantam 2005), a novel that takes an entertaining look at how people tend to push love away because of shame about their looks. \"But I also meet lots of people who fail to reach out for hugs and human touch not because they don\'t want it but because they\'re scared of what the other person will think about the lumps and bulges on their body--even though they know that cuddling their loved one will be a ball. They suffer from what I call \'hugphobia\", an irrational fear of having a person feel the fat on their body.\"
The five signs of \"hugphobia\" are:
1. Pulling away when a mate comes up from behind to nuzzle the neck.
2. Sucking in the belly at the very thought of being hugged.
3. Cringing when another person places a hand on the waistline.
4. Constantly weighing, dieting, obsessing over weight.
5. Wanting to keep some clothes on during intimate moments with a mate.
Hugphobia isn\'t the same as being clinically diagnosed as obsessive/compulsive and fearing another person\'s germs. It\'s having the desire for close contact with another person but allowing the fear of what that person will think of someone\'s body to prevent that someone who wants hugs and cuddles from getting what they want.
\"Many people feel a touch of concern about how a love interest will respond to their body,\" says Andrea. \"For those who let that concern stop them from having a close physical relationship with lots of hugs and cuddles, I can recommend some ideas for shifting to a more self-accepting mindset.\" Andrea has applied these tips to her own life and enjoys a great, loving relationship with her husband, who she often talks about in the articles and books featured on her website, http://www.waggener-books.com.
Contact Andrea Rains Waggener at (360) 581-4085 or e-mail her at theupbeat@coastaccess.com for more insights into this topic. Andrea has been featured in Fitness, Shape, and Diane magazines. She's been a guest on Pacific Northwest TV's Northwest Afternoon and Being In Seattle, as well as on several radio talk shows. More information about Andrea\'s books and articles, along with Andrea\'s inspiring blog, can be found at tp://www.waggener-books.com.
2022
