Want Better Recovery & Less Stress? This Relationship Habit Really Matters
Most of us think about intimacy as something that strengthens emotional connection. But a new study suggests it may do far more than that.
According to research published in JAMA Psychiatry1, the combination of physical intimacy and oxytocin, the neurotransmitter often nicknamed the “love hormone,” may actually help the body heal faster.
Measuring love, touch & biological repair
To test whether intimacy can shift physical recovery, researchers recruited 80 healthy romantic couples and brought them into the lab for a series of tightly controlled experiments.
First, each participant received four small suction-blister wounds on their forearms, a research method commonly used to measure skin healing. Then the couples were randomized to receive either intranasal oxytocin or a placebo for one week.
But the study didn’t stop at biology. Scientists also tested how relationship dynamics influenced recovery. Some couples completed a 10-minute appreciation exercise, while others simply chatted. For the next five days, participants logged their daily interactions—affection, conflict, sex, all of it—and provided saliva samples so researchers could track cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone.
By combining wound healing, hormone data, and real-world intimacy patterns, the researchers were able to see exactly how connection shows up in the body.
Intimacy + oxytocin = better healing
Let’s get one thing out of the way. Oxytocin by itself did not speed up healing. And positive conversations alone didn’t create a clear effect either.
But when oxytocin coincided with real physical intimacy, like affectionate touch or sexual activity, wounds healed more quickly over the week-long period.
A few key findings stood out:
- Oxytocin amplified the healing effects of affectionate touch. Couples who touched more often showed better wound recovery only when they’d also received oxytocin.
- Sexual intimacy was linked to lower cortisol levels. Regardless of oxytocin assignment, more sexual activity predicted lower daily cortisol, suggesting a meaningful stress-buffering effect.
- Oxytocin worked as a “social amplifier.” It didn’t create connection, but it enhanced the healing benefits when connection was already happening.
Your relationships are part of your health plan
There’s a tendency in health culture to focus on the individual—your diet, your workouts, your sleep routine. Those matter, of course. But this study is a reminder that our relationships don’t just shape how we feel. They shape how we heal.
Affectionate touch has already been linked to:
- Lower blood pressure
- Improved heart-rate variability
- Reduced perceived stress
- Higher oxytocin levels
- Better emotional regulation
This new research adds another layer. The possibility that physical intimacy helps the body repair tissue more efficiently, especially when backed by the neurochemical support of oxytocin.
And while oxytocin nasal sprays aren’t the takeaway here, the broader message couldn’t be clearer.
Your daily interactions, including how you touch, communicate, soothe, and show up for each other, have real downstream effects on your longevity.
Simple ways to support connection & calm
You don’t need a clinical lab or nasal spray to tap into these benefits. Research on social connection points to a few practical steps:
- Prioritize affectionate touch. Even brief, warm physical contact can shift your stress response.
- Build in small moments of appreciation. Positive feedback enhances connection and buffers stress.
- Normalize shared relaxation. The study found people tended to be intimate when already calm, so rituals that help you wind down together matter.
- Repair conflict quickly. Chronic relationship stress is directly linked to delayed healing.
The takeaway
At its core, this study shows that healing is easier when we’re not doing life alone. Supportive touch, appreciation, and genuine closeness create the kind of internal environment where stress quiets down, and recovery speeds up.
And, as the holidays bring more moments with partners and family, it’s a chance to practice the small relational habits—gratitude, presence, warmth—that strengthen both connection and health.