Confessions From a Cuddle Puddle
Why the experience of snuggling strangers has caught fire
I’ve always been enamored of the idea of a cuddle puddle. The thought of surface-level strangers huddling together like emperor penguins sheltering themselves from a frigid blizzard seems not only unwaveringly brave but also primarily animalistic.
We’re nothing but apes with bigger-than-average brains and opposable digits, after all, and like our primate relatives, we crave physical connection. Science has shown that the act of touch is essential to our emotional, mental, and physical well-being. We can, quite literally, go insane from a lack of it.
But as technological advances continue to push human society forward, we’ve sacrificed human interaction as an unforeseen side effect. I mean, why make the trip across town to hang out with your friend when you could, instead, Postmates Panda Express and virtually dine with him or her over FaceTime?
An outcome of this new human-contact deprivation? Cuddle puddles. These non-sexual events, where people get together to cozy up next to each other, have grown in popularity year after year. You can now even hire a “professional snuggler” on demand on your smartphone. And that senior cuddler could be making well over $40 an hour, to boot.
