감동의 작동 원리

직장에서 긴 하루를 보낸 후 문으로 걸어 들어가 발가락이 끼고 발뒤꿈치가 물집이 나는 신발을 벗습니다. 당신은 재빨리 자신을 치료용으로 문지른 다음 따뜻하고 푹신한 양말을 신습니다. 당신은 당신의 개를 재빠르게 쓰다듬어 주고, 부드러운 베개를 잡고 마침내 소파에 눕습니다. 편안한 자세를 취하게 되면 음료수를 테이블에서 너무 멀리 놓았다는 것을 깨닫게 됩니다. 하지만 이것은 문제가 되지 않습니다. TV 화면에 주의를 집중하는 동안, 당신은 손을 뻗어 따뜻한 차를 마시며 주위를 둘러봅니다. 따뜻한 세라믹 머그에 손을 대면 집에 왔다는 것을 알게 됩니다.

문을 통과한 지 15분이 지나지 않았지만 촉각은 주변 환경에서 수백만 비트의 정보를 수집했습니다. 신발 한 켤레의 고통이 사라지고 부드럽고 폭신한 편안함이 자리 잡았습니다. 강아지의 차갑고 젖은 키스는 소파의 따뜻한 안락함과 따뜻한 차 한 잔으로 바뀌었습니다. 온도에서 질감에 이르기까지 촉각은 뇌와 지속적으로 소통하고 있습니다.

신체 감각 시스템 은 촉각을 담당합니다[출처: Neuro Science ]. 체성 감각 시스템에는 누군가가 당신에게 솔질을 할 때와 같이 무언가가 피부에 닿았을 때 느끼는 데 도움이 되는 신경 수용체가 있습니다. 이러한 감각 수용체는 일반적으로 접촉 수용체 또는 압력 수용체 로 알려져 있습니다. 또한 통증을 느끼는 신경 수용체가 있고 뜨겁고 차가운 것과 같은 온도 변화가 있습니다 [출처: Biology Web ].

이 복잡한 시스템에 대해 더 자세히 알고 싶다면 머리에서 발끝까지, 그리고 다시 뒤로 촉각이 어떻게 작동하는지 알아보기 위해 계속 읽으십시오.

You probably think of the sense of touch as relating to your skin. After all, you have about 5 million sensory nerve receptors in your skin. But you also can feel pain and pressure inside your body. Think about stomachaches and headaches. Most of your sense of touch, though, comes from external stimulus by way of your skin.

So how does a quick journey from the touch receptors in your skin to your brain happen? When the touch, pain or heat sensors in your skin are stimulated, they send electrical pulses to your neurons, special cells that relay electrochemical impulses [source: A.D.A.M.]. The sensory neurons then act as a relay team, passing along the electrical pulse from neuron to neuron until it reaches your spinal cord. Your spinal cord takes the incoming signal and sends it to your brain. Once the brain receives the signal from the spinal cord, it translates the electrical signal [source: Johns Hopkins].

If your pain receptors have sent a message saying that a pair of tight-fitting shoes has gotten too uncomfortable, the brain knows your body is feeling pain. Your brain signals the muscles in your foot to curl up your pinkie toe away from the pain until you take your shoes off. If you've touched something very cold, your brain knows the cold receptors have been activated; you'll probably shiver in response. Likewise, if you are feeling pressure when you hug an old friend, your brain will sense the pressure of the hug around your shoulders or body.

Your brain can combine messages from your sensory receptors. For instance, when you wrap a heated cotton towel around your body after stepping out of the sauna, you're using both your pressure and temperature receptors. However, how you feel about that action is because of the psychology behind your sense of touch. Read on to find out how your brain might perceive incoming touch in different ways.

Touch in the Womb

Your sense of touch develops before you're even born -- it's the first sense to develop inside of the womb. Babies rely on their sense of touch to survive outside of the womb as well. Babies turn their head to the side when they feel something touching their cheek. Pressure sensors also let the baby know they are safe during a comforting embrace [source: Children's Mercy Hospitals].

You probably already know a hug from a loved one can lower your blood pressure and make you feel valued and important. A firm handshake with a friend can create a connection. How you perceive the hug or handshake, along with how your touch receptors receive the pressure, is rooted in your brain.

There are several basic kinds of touch that you may experience:

Your sense of touch is not only related to your nerve endings undergoing stimulation; the way you interpret the touch is also important. For lots more information on the sense of touch, see the links on the next page.

Acupuncture

Your sense of touch usually pulls you away from the prick of a needle. But practitioners of acupuncture -- a form of therapy that involves sticking the patient in certain places with very thin needles -- have been poking patients for thousands of years. Acupuncture's origins can be traced back to ancient China. Pin-pricking proponents of acupuncture believe that the correct placement of needles in the patient's skin can restore the body to a healthy balance [source: Mayo Clinic].

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