Look, it will stop hurting

I do not think anyone needs to be convinced that the touch is important and indeed indispensable for building interpersonal relations. Researchers are always interested not so much in conviction as in scientific proof of ongoing relationships. That's why it was decided to prove that the partner's touch can minimize the subjective feeling of pain in women. For this purpose, the latest technological achievements were used, allowing observation of brain functioning in more than one person at a time.

This technique has already proved that being in a group can "synchronize" the brain work of more than one person in the course of such activities as talking, rhythmical rhythm, playing the guitar or mimicking gestures. It has been proven that an important role in such synchronization is played by oxytocin, a hormone strengthening interpersonal bonds, released in the mother at the sight of the child or in people who care about each other.

In the latest study on the level of pain experienced by a close relative, 22 heterosexual couples between 23 and 32 years of age participated. Pain itself is an unpleasant subjective sensory or mental experience, often associated with tissue damage or the possibility of such damage. Due to the subjectivity of feelings, it is difficult to measure it in any way other than based on the opinion of the person who feels it.

On the common waves

In the experiment, the researchers were shocked by the partner's current, and the men were supposed to help relieve their pain through touch. This help included first holding hands, then sitting in one room, but without physical contact, and finally staying in separate rooms. During the study, the researchers analyzed brain waves called alpha waves at the frequency of 8-12 Hz. It is known that these waves appear in the brain during the moments of relaxation with closed eyes (but disappear after opening the eyes, thinking about movement or its implementation and during intellectual effort). They can also play a role in the sensation of pain and compassion, or empathy.

It turned out, the touch of a loved one caused the synchronization of alpha waves, that is to say, the partners "were broadcasting on common waves". In women, these waves appeared mainly in the central centers of the brain, whereas in men they were observed mainly in the right hemisphere. Women who were touched by their partners during the shock were feeling pain as weaker than when the partner was not there.

Community reward

Scientists believe that when we feel understood, the center of the reward system activates in our brains. In addition, the brain's "synchronization" by scholars is pleasant and can give a sense of accomplishment. Therefore, the touch of the partner and the feeling that he understands and compresses our pain causes the brain to take away the stimulus as less painful than when we are alone in pain.

This is another scientific proof that a sense of interpersonal relationship can heal, and a sense of loneliness can make you sick. Not so long ago, it has been proven that in lonely people, the body can produce up to 10 percent more cortisol and adrenaline, called stress hormones, than in people who do not feel loneliness. The prolonged elevated levels of both these molecules are responsible for the development of many diseases, including heart attacks, cancers or autoimmune diseases. The human body interprets loneliness as a big stress, therefore, apart from cortisol and adrenaline, the production of cytokinins, that is substances conducive to the appearance of inflammation, increases.

Loneliness is especially dangerous for men because it has been proven that lonely men are 64 percent more likely to have fatal stroke than men who are in relationships.

Based:

P. Goldstein, I. Weissman-Fogel, G. Dumas, S. G. Shamay-Tsoory,Brain-to-brain coupling during handholding is associated with pain reduction.PNAS (2018) 201703643