The importance of a cuddle is sometimes overlooked. It’s a simple yet affective act of intimacy that can bring great comfort to a person during difficult times, and help to raise a smile.
This small sign of affection was put on hold for almost two years, as the Coronavirus pandemic changed the way we all lived our daily lives. As well as limiting the places we go and people we see, the pandemic also famously stopped us from cuddling our loved ones.
Through this time, we had to think of other, more traditional ways to show our loved ones we care, by writing letters, sending cards and communicating via video calls to see their smiles.
National Hug Day, which is celebrated on 21st January each year, was also effected during the pandemic and we had to send virtual hugs to our loved ones in place of the real thing. This provided some comfort to residents and their loved ones as they received paper hugs from their family members in the mail, and saw the wonderful pictures of them creating them on our Facebook pages. However, while it did make the best of an unfortunate situation, everyone was in agreement that it couldn't quite compare to the real thing.
Fortunately, this year has seen vast improvement, with restrictions eased and cuddling allowed again. Residents and team members knew that they had to seize this returned opportunity, and celebrated the day by celebrating the power of the cuddle and the positive impact this can have on a person’s day and overall wellbeing.
It was a simple way to celebrate this day but an incredibly impactful one, as it helped to spread love and happiness across the family! People were asked to capture these moments in photos and video so they could be shared on social media with the hashtag, #CuddlingAfterCovid to show the love that is shared across the family and, to try end encourage other to hold their loved on close on this day.
Check out our gallery below of the hugs that took place this national Hug Day.