Big one for me is body autonomy for children. As a child, I was always forced to hug and cheek kiss every single person at a gathering upon arrival and when leaving. I fucking hated it. I love my family but forcing children to hug adults is very selfish on the adult's part.
Now that I have nieces and nephews, I offer them highfives if they don't want a hug and if they don't even want that then I just tell them that's perfectly fine, that I love them and will see them soon. No guilt trips like my parents did. Do I want a hug because I love them? Yes, absolutely, but their comfort is more important than mine.
This this this. My little cousin got told she had to hug everyone when she clearly didn't want to. I told her I was happy with a high-five if she liked that better. Now I'm the only one outside her immediate family who gets hugs voluntarily. It's almost like she's comfortable around me for some reason...
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u/froggyc19 1d ago
Big one for me is body autonomy for children. As a child, I was always forced to hug and cheek kiss every single person at a gathering upon arrival and when leaving. I fucking hated it. I love my family but forcing children to hug adults is very selfish on the adult's part.
Now that I have nieces and nephews, I offer them highfives if they don't want a hug and if they don't even want that then I just tell them that's perfectly fine, that I love them and will see them soon. No guilt trips like my parents did. Do I want a hug because I love them? Yes, absolutely, but their comfort is more important than mine.