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Physical contact with other humans is essential for our emotional, mental and physical well-being. Touch deprivation (also called touch starvation or skin hunger) happens when you go without human touch for a while (and it’s not just sexual touch—you can simply be missing a friendly hug or a platonic high-five). In this article, we’ll describe some of the symptoms you might experience if you are touch starved, as well as a few ways you can cope with touch starvation.

1

You feel a deep sense of loneliness.

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9

You’re having issues in your relationship.

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  1. Even when you’re in a romantic relationship (and having sex), you can still experience touch deprivation. This usually happens when you and your partner aren’t touching each other enough non-sexually. You might feel moody, on-edge, or irritated with your partner, even when they haven’t done anything wrong. [9]
    • If you think this might be the case for you, sit down with your partner and talk about it. You can both work to touch each other more on a daily basis.
    • Things like holding hands, hugging each other, and giving each other massages can help you alleviate your skin hunger.
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