I learned that one of the ways that babies fail to thrive is not being held. I type this one-handed as I hold my grandson who started fussing. Touch is, to me, one of the most important things in life. I've seen a lot of children (when I taught) to whom a small hug was a great gift.

Like a lot who've written here, being touched now is a bit of a difficult thing. Especially by a man. A man brushing by me in a crowd or getting too close can send my anxiety soaring. I understand now that this is a learned behavior and associated with PTSD. I don't know if it will ever go away. But by people that I care about or who are 'before people' (before PTSD), touch is still pretty much ok with me. It's the new or the 'after people' that take quite a while for me to warm up to.

Touch has always been something that helps me. It continues to be a thing that helps me to calm myself when life gets too much.

Lisa