Cuddling is good for your health, and now you can do it with strangers with new app for iPhone, Cuddlr. Even though the Onion wrote an article about it, it’s not a joke. It’s intended to connect you with consenting adults for safe, fun, non sexual snuggling.
Cuddlr App Rules of the Road
There is some logic behind it: cuddling has been said to release Oxytocin, the hormone that makes you feel good and connected with others, so much so that it helps people with autism and schizophrenia overcome social deficits.
Oxytocin has also been found to reduce stress, reduce blood pressure, increase your pain threshold and many more things.
Call me cynical, but for every 1 person who legitimately wants more affection in his or her life, there are 10 more who just want to use this to hook up, as this brave user discovered when she tried it out.
There is a negative side to this Oxytocin fascination too. They’ve found that for people who don’t have social shortcomings, oxytocin can cause over-sensitivity to emotional cues in everyday life – misreading a smile as a flirtatious come-on, or a facial twitch due to a sore shoulder as a negative reaction to what you’re saying. In a cuddling interaction with a stranger, that excess oxytocin in your bloodstream might just cause you to believe that the hug is becoming creepy. I’m pretty sure creepy cuddles won’t lead to positive side effects.
It seems to me like if you do need a cuddle, there are lot of other safer options: invite a friend over and ask them for a hug, or move to a latin country where kisses and hugs are in oversupply. If that doesn’t float your boat, organize a cuddle party in your area. At least you would be surrounded by other people cuddling, and there’s less likelihood you will interpret the cuddle as something more than just affection.
Still want to risk it? Download it here.
