Hugging vs Shaking Hands

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I don't like touching people. I have a large personal space. I have gotten used to shaking people's hands when I meet them. I especially don't like hugging. My hugs are always awkward, I have no idea how to do it. What do others do about this? I much prefer just shaking people's hands.

I'd much rather give hugs. I'm a very huggy person. :O)

Hugging situations start to commence so I "get in line" while seeing how other people are doing it.

It's one of those things I've gotten better at over time along with a hand shake.


I think someone suddenly offering a spontaneous High Five might catch me off guard a little.

I prefer hugging to shaking people's hands.

Hugging tends to happen with people you know...now hugging my friends is fine as long as it's on my terms, what gets me is hugging my boyfriends friends or his family because I don't know them very well and it's just awkward, they seem to feel awkward too, but it's the done thing so they do it regardless. Hugging is up-close but it's fairly easy to get, just arms around them, pat hands on back or squeeze lightly...granted in awkward situations even if you get the hug right it's still going to be awkward due to who you're hugging and why, although they are easier to avoid than hand-shakes.

Shaking hands however tends to be more formal, so it's more something you do - that you HAVE to do - with important people such as if you're being interviewed for a job, and there's more involved - apparently being female it's less important to get this right than if I was a male, but you still have to couple hand-shaking with eye contact and the firmness is important too (too limp implies you're weak, too strong is just painful to the other person), there's too much tied-up in hand-shaking for me to be comfortable with it.

I'm fine with hugging. I can be a hugger. I know how to hug people all the different ways. I'm also okay with shaking hands as long as it's not someone who likes to crush your hand. There was a trick someone taught me to avoid getting your hand crushed but I've forgotten it. Now, I don't try to be brave about it. I'm a 5'3 woman. I can yelp if someone hurts me and he'll look like a douche. So there you go. I usually let people take the lead on hugging until it becomes a regular routine to hug someone so then I know I can initiate hugging. That way I know I'm not making an awkward, wrong decision... because that's happened before. If I need a hug from friends, I'll say that I need a hug and they'll oblige.

I'm not adverse to physical contact (I actually like it) so this is something that I've been able to figure out for myself through trial and error.

Shaking hands all the way man.

Neither.

I'd rather do neither, but I can handle shaking hands. I wash my hands constantly so their cooties won't stay on me very long. But hugging is the worst. When I feel someone's body in my arms, I'm thinking, "What am I supposed to do with it?" Not to mention that most of the time, people are hugging you just because they're expected to. This happens whenever you see family members you haven't seen in a long time. "Go give grandma a hug." Piss off. She doesn't want it, I don't want it, just let me leave. Artificial social formalities can just go sit on a rock in hell where they belong.

I don't like shaking hands. Often times people don't know how to shake properly anyway. Plus, I really do think that it is an extremely unhygienic practice that should be abolished. People sneeze into their hands, and don't sanitize properly or often enough. I hate receiving a limp sweaty hand, it makes me cringe. Hugs are ok, because there aren't really as many rules. You can just quickly embrace then back away. Your faces don't touch, and some people can give warm hugs. I like that. What I really hate is the kissing on cheeks!! !

Why can't we all just nod or wave? Why so much touching? I find it especially weird because I don't touch any of my family members! No hugging or kissing ever. So it feels really weird to be hugging and kissing strangers!

I have to feel very close to someone, to be able to have physical contact as a rule, and even then, I find it really awkward. I enjoy hugs and holding hands, but I do not know how to initiate it, and end up thinking about initiating it for long periods of time, before I actually find the courage to try, even if I have known someone at close quarters for a time. If someone hugs me, I take a while to react, and can come across as being rather rigid and unwanting of it, which is frustrating since I do enjoy physical contact with someone I am close to. I don't do hand shaking full stop. I despise it.

I hug girls and shake guys hands,....unlesss hes a friend of mine I havnt seen in a long time.

its super awkward (at least for me) to shake a girls hand. The only time i do that is when I'm meeting a girl for the first time. girls usually come in close for a hug almost everytime anyway.

Either works for me without issue; I usually have to wait an instant to see what the other person feels is appropriate.

One of the reasons is that the instinct I was taught growing up was to *bow*. My upbringing was Asian. Fortunately many Americans get a kick out of it, and it usually makes for an amusing icebreaker when I mistime it, someone starts extending their hand but I've already put my heels together and I'm bowing at them.

I'm fine with either...as long as the other person initiates it lol

I don't mind being hugged or touched... so long as I know when its coming. If you barely brush up against me then I will snap at you. I've done it to my dad and he's always said, "but I barely touched you". My mom does this to me too and if I'm not expecting it then I snap at her.

As for shaking hands, when someone holds out their hand, I usually don't take it. I find it hard to do this but I can't really explain why. People often look at me like, "well aren't you going to shake my hand?" and I just look away and bite my lip; keeping my hands to my chest while also fidgeting with them.

i hate hugging i dont like being touched by anyone, i have had people come up to me for a hug and i have to stop them and say stay away from me or dont touch me or offer them a handshake and wash my hands after

I do what the other person wants me to do. If the person wants a hug, I give them a hug. If the person wants a handshake, I give them a handshake.