If you want to spread good feelings, hug someone you love!

That’s the treatment prescribed in The Family Squeeze, a new children’s picture book written by Christian D. Pulcini, M.D., M.P.H., M.Ed., assistant professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics. Through rhyming verses and colorful illustrations, the book celebrates the power of physical touch in a family who embrace one another when someone falls, or scores the ball; when they roam, and come home; when things are sad, and when things are glad.

“Despite ups and downs, happy and sad times, there is one thing the Monster family can always rely on to bring everyone together: the family squeeze,” according to the summary on the book’s back cover. “In a society where trauma is too common, the family squeeze is both a strategy and a message: Life will bring a lot of emotions and experiences for young people and adults alike, but through a simple gesture of loving physical touch, families can build resilience and endure difficult times together.”

Pulcini, an emergency medicine physician and pediatrician, wrote the book with support and feedback from his wife and three young children, with their family squeezes serving as inspiration. In the Emergency Department (ED) at the UVM Medical Center, Pulcini cares for children who suffer violent injuries, trauma-related disorders, and mental health conditions. As a researcher, Pulcini’s investigations focus on children with disabilities, trauma-informed care, and childhood firearm injuries. The book is both autobiographical and educational, for children and those who care for them.

“My family and I actually do this,” says Pulcini, noting that the book was his family’s COVID-19 pandemic project. “Over the course of the pandemic, we would get together for a squeeze both to celebrate and to get through tough times,” he said, adding that healing touch helps build resilience not just in the person receiving the touch, but also in the person giving it. “The mental health crisis among youth, especially during the past several years, inspired me to put this story down on paper for everyone to benefit.”

“I am front and center witnessing youth and family trauma and resiliency. We have seen a lot of children come through emergency departments who are discharged, and then come back with mental health issues later,” Pulcini said. “Oftentimes it is the unseen trauma at the time of injury or illness that needs to be addressed to prevent future challenges, and I have no better suggestion as a physician, husband, and father than a family squeeze to help heal.”

At the Pierson Library in Shelburne, Vermont, children listened to The Family Squeeze read aloud by the author, Christian Pulcini.

It may seem unusual for a doctor and researcher to write a children’s picture book, but for Pulcini, it makes perfect sense. As an undergraduate student, he double-majored in literature and biology, and he worked as a middle school science teacher before attending medical school.

“It’s cool that a doctor did this, and it is tied to his research around resiliency in kids,” says Class of 2025 medical student Katie Barker, who is applying for a residency match in pediatrics. Barker and classmate Jharna Jahnavi attended Pulcini’s book launch event at Phoenix Books in Burlington.

“It is inspiring to see Dr. Pulcini’s work as a product of his experiences. He took what he learned from the families he encountered in the ED and his own family’s experiences to reflect on the power of physical touch to build resilience through both happy and challenging times,” Barker said. “Children’s books can be a powerful way for kids to engage with and practice literary skills, while also enjoying a fun story. It’s another way to care for children’s health.”

Pulcini says he approached writing the book like a research project: He identified the topic, tested ideas, and organized the information. He spent Friday nights writing and rewriting the text for more than three years.

“It was like an experiment in my house. I shared my ideas with my wife and children, they helped me make improvements,” he said. “They looked at the sample illustrations, proofread, and offered suggestions.”

Pulcini worked with Onion River Press, an independent publisher based in Burlington, Vermont. The publisher suggested several illustrators, and Pulcini chose to work with Matthew Gauvin, a Vermont native whose work is displayed in galleries, festivals, and private collections around the U.S. In The Family Squeeze, the affectionate monsters exemplify the Pulcini family and their frequent family squeezes.

The Family Squeeze by Christian Pulcini is available at bookstores and libraries across Vermont and online through Onion River Press.