#Professional cuddlers offering virtual snuggle sessions in lockdown

While physical touch is on hold, professional cuddlers are turning to screen snuggling as an alternative.

For those who make a living offering clients nonsexual embraces, the coronavirus has proved a huge hurdle. Despite the industry seeming to be dependent on in-person interaction, some practitioners have found a way to offer their skills through a screen.

“There’s no substitution for human touch, but it definitely helps bridge the gap,” actor and writer Randy Wade Kelley, 37, told the Guardian of a recent virtual cuddling session. After self-quarantining alone for over a month in New York City, Kelley was hungry for human connection and sought out a professional from Los Angeles-based Cuddle Sanctuary.

The organization is not offering in-person sessions for the foreseeable future, but founder Jean Franzblau has found there are ways to lead online sessions that offer a balm to loneliness. “I was resistant on a very deep level to offer something that I thought would be valueless or seem like snake oil,” Franzblau told the Guardian of her initial thoughts. But she has since found that there is value to be had in virtual sessions if the client is open-minded. “We must meet each other halfway to make the magic.”

In her session with Kelley, Franzblau had him lie on his side with one arm stretched under his head and the other near his torso — simulating him holding himself.

“There’s no substitution for human touch, but it definitely helps bridge the gap,” he said of his self-snuggling experience. “I’m so thankful I’m able to cuddle myself.”

Madelon Guinazzo, co-founder of cuddle therapist training platform Cuddlist, has found she’s able to re-create some of the intimacy of touch through increased computer screen eye contact.

“We can’t actually cuddle but it’s some sort of connection,” Guinazzo said. “It’s like when you’re used to having your favorite meal, let’s say lasagna, and then somebody says here’s a substitute lasagna. It’s OK as long as you’re expecting it not to taste like lasagna.”