Let Your Touch Be Healing

Use Your Natural Abilities

A touch may express more than a thousand words, yet our head-oriented culture does not encourage it, and fear of its misuse is prevalent. Teachers are advised not to touch children in school for fear of being misunderstood, so children grow up being more and more touch-deprived. Seniors too are likely to lack the benefit of touch if a partner has died.

Touch is the most basic expression of love and connection between people. Decades ago, the Spitz studies showed that babies die if they are not given any touch or affection, even if they are given food. And therapy dogs are now brought into hospitals to boost the healing of patients.

Most children will welcome safe touch. Touch can comfort, calm or energize. Appropriate touch always enhances health. When I was very young, I loved to sit on my mother’s lap at story time or have her brush my hair once the “tugs” were out. If I came home chilled on a cold day, I’d ask my father to rub my back up and down vigorously, and in no time I’d be warm again.

What can touch do?

“Laying-on-of-hands” is in fact an age-old, but often under-utilized, natural capacity.

In developing confidence to use the loving energy of your hands when it is appropriate to touch, you are following your natural human instinct and abilities. You can express concern and support, relax the body and release tight muscles, create a safe haven, nurture and channel healing. Often touch is the only way to communicate when you are at a total loss for words in a deeply troubling or emotional situation.

However, no matter how wonderful you have felt enjoying loving touch, others may not have similar feelings. Respect their boundaries, as even a light touch on a shoulder can be unwelcome. You just don’t know who may have experienced inappropriate touch from people who invaded their space. They are rightly guarded if they do not know or trust you. Inappropriate touch is intrusive, unasked, unwanted and can often be sexual.

So what can you do to bring more touch into your life and share touch with others—safely?

1. Greet people more warmly and reach out your hand as a gesture that you would welcome a handshake.
2. If you know a person, look for the body language - their body language can indicate their willingness to receive/give a hug, and vice-versa at that specific time. IF not sure, you can ask, “may I hug you?”
3. Always ask permission before you touch someone you do not know.
4. When you next see a friend or family member who is ill in bed at home or in hospital, offer to hold or rub their feet, hold their hand, stroke their head, massage their neck and/or shoulder muscles. Be respectful of their answer.

Research shows that massage reduces pain and speeds up healing

Why human touch speeds up healing.

Well, good health actually comes when a person connects to and invites a strong balanced current of "life-force" "chi" or "energy" to flow freely up through the body from the earth, renewing not only the cells but also the whole energy field at every moment. The shift in emphasis from illness to wellness comes with the recognition that our primary concern is to maintain a healthy energy field, since any depleted or "stuck" energy manifests in symptoms of body, mind, emotion or spirit such as ulcers, depression, back pain, anxiety. Because we are a unified whole, once energy becomes unblocked, healing can happen at the physical, mental, emotional or spiritual level, wherever it is needed. That’s why appropriate touch, the most basic way of expressing love and connection, is such a simple, natural, unifying and healing gift.

Born and brought up in Scotland, Puja Thomson is founder and director of Roots & Wings in New Paltz. She's a holistic health care professional, educator, workshop leader and minister of healing. Her recently-published book AFTER SHOCK: FROM CANCER DIAGNOSIS TO HEALING - A step-by-step guide to help you navigate your way has been awarded the honor of FINALIST in the National Indie Excellence Book Awards and Best Books Award. Also the author of CD and Workbook, Roots & Wings: For Strength and Freedom (Revised 2008). Go to www.rootsnwings.com for info, excerpts, reviews, how to purchase.

Puja is quoted in two articles in the February 2009, Chronogram-- Ministering to Your Needs: Choosing the Wedding Officiant that’s Right For You by Kelley Granger and More Than Surviving: Living With Serious Illness by Lorrie Klosterman. And thank you Brian for your comments in the editorial!