Touch is not a luxury but a biological and emotional need, and its absence quietly drives depression, disconnection, and longing. Armand DiMele surveys how affection works across cultures, life stages, and temperaments, from the bonding chemistry of parent and child to what elderly people lose when their partners die.
Touch is a basic human need that goes unmet for many people, especially the elderly. Armand explores the science and practice of massage with Dr. Sherry Siegel, M.D. and licensed massage therapist Faith Schwartz, covering everything from nerve sensitivity and endorphins to the many massage modalities and why draping builds trust.
Words are often the worst way to communicate. Armand DiMele surveys the full spectrum of nonverbal language, from somatic cues like blushing and blanching to personal space, paralanguage, gesture, and adornment, then turns to the science of touch and why Americans are so confused about it.
Without touch, infants die and adults wither. Armand and co-host Roberta Maria Atti trace the evolutionary roots of touch from homunculus brain maps to the Tellington method, while examining how American culture’s deep ambivalence about physical contact has produced high rates of child beatings and low rates of nurturing affection. Jean Liedloff, Author, whose Amazon fieldwork inspired the previous episode, hovers over the discussion.
What happens to people who were never held as babies? Jean Liedloff, author of “The Continuum Concept,” argues that the unmet need for physical contact in infancy drives lifelong restlessness, rage, and self-rejection. Armand and callers trace the thread from Columbine to loneliness to addiction.
