The beauty of a hug
Celebrities share the healthy effects of an embrace
By Irene C. PerezPhilippine Daily Inquirer
UNILEVER PR and events manager Nikki Abella, Dove Lotions brand manager Julia Ng, Gang Badoy-Capati, Kelly Misa-Fernandez, Cheska Garcia-Kramer, Mikaela Lagdameo-Martinez, Unilever personal care PR head Apples Aberin hug it out for Dove’s Instahug campaign. PHOTOS BY ANDREW TADALAN
MAKE someone instantly feel better with a hug. Upload your “hug” photo with the hashtag #instahug on Twitter or Instagram.
It only takes a 20-second hug for a woman to establish trust.
This is according to Pia Acevedo, relationship expert and life coach. According to her, hugging releases oxytocins or chemicals that make women trust the other person.
“Trust makes people feel alive. It validates one’s existence until you reach a point when you say ‘I love you,’” she explained while facilitating hugging exercises in Blue Leaf Events Pavilion, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. “Dove recognizes hugging as a form of human connection and means for people to connect.”
The activity was part of Dove’s Instahug Campaign, which promotes hugging as a basic form of bonding. The event also featured Dove Lotion with DeepCare Complex that promotes healthy skin.
Unilever personal care PR head Apples Aberin said Dove has always been about empowerment, individuality and celebrating real beauty. “Dove wants women to enjoy their own brand of beauty,” she added.
Dove Lotions brand manager Julia Ng defined real beauty as “something you bring out of yourself.”
Dove Go Fresh lotion.
Dove Lotion with DeepCare Complex comes in variants such as Indulgent with shea butter for moisturized skin, Go Fresh with fresh cucumber and green tea scent for revitalized skin, Essential for hydrated skin, and Silky with a bit of shimmer for glowing skin.
#Instahug
Join the Instahug campaign online by posting a photo showing any form of hugging—between you and a family member, friend, even a pet. Group hugs are also welcome. Upload the photo with the hashtag #instahug on Twitter or Instagram, a popular photo-sharing app which is available in Android and Apple units.
Instagram and Twitter users Cheska Garcia-Kramer, Gang Badoy-Capati, Kelly Misa-Fernandez and Mikaela Lagdameo-Martinez shared their insights on hugging and beauty in a discussion.
Kramer, mother of two with another one on the way, said she is a “natural hugger.”
“Having a husband and two girls made me more affectionate,” she said. “I used to be teased a lot as a kid because I have lots of freckles. Then I realized they’re what made me different.”
Fernandez, newlywed model and Inquirer beauty columnist, said she was a sweet kid, but “lost it” as she grew up.
BREAST cancer survivors Patty Betita and Melissa de Leon
“The Instahug project reminded me to be more expressive,” she added.
Meanwhile, Rock Ed Philippines founder Capati said she hugs close friends and loved ones, but is “not used to starting it.”
“I am the youngest among 10 siblings, and have lived alone for a long time in another country, but of course, I enjoy hugging it out with people dear to me,” she said.
Icanserve
Dove also supports the Icanserve Foundation in line with Breast Cancer Awareness Month last October and Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan that aims to improve a billion lives by 2020.
RELATIONSHIP expert Pia Acevedo, Icanserve Foundation spokesperson Maritoni Fernandez
Icanserve is an advocacy group that raises breast cancer awareness and prevention through education and information. It is also a support group for patients and their families.
Breast cancer survivor and model Patty Betita said hugs from her son Emilio strengthened her will to go through treatments.
“He was the first person I thought of when I found out I had breast cancer,” Betita said. “And he was the first person I hugged every day while I was undergoing chemotherapy. He was eight then.”
Survivors Maritoni Fernandez and Melissa de Leon said it’s very natural among survivors to hug it out—even if they don’t know each other.
“We did not even have to talk, we just hug and cry. It may appear weird to some people, but it takes another survivor to understand one,” Fernandez said.
This shared trust through hugging may be applicable only to females, said coach Acevedo. She reminded, though, that hugging is the first step for people to reach out now.
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Tags: Dove , Instahug Campaign , life coach , oxytocins , Pia Acevedo , relationship expert
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