It isn't really true that I have found happiness on Cuddle Comfort. But it is true that I have found a more acceptable form of misery, not least because it has a lot more cuddles in it.
Somebody posted a thread recently, "Ugh feeling depressed and lonely. I'm so tired of trying". I have felt like that for most of the last several (many?) years. Cuddle Comfort has helped me, it really has. I've been thinking for a while about how and why it helped. I have made a couple of real internet friends; a number of good internet acquintances; established great relationships with some cuddle professionals, one of whom has turned into a friend; and found several cuddle buddies who I cuddle regularly. The whole thing has been a roaring success. Not without moments of difficulty, but overall it's made my life better.
So what are the essentials of my story? How did I go from thinking, "This is a stupid waste of time, nobody ever replies and if they do it's two messages then nothing" to "I must write a post on how this has been such a success". The truth is, it's not that hard providing you live somewhere that has a reasonable supply of cuddlers.
This advice is obviously based heavily on my own experience and is very much written from and for a male perspective, but tempered by my knowledge of cuddling from both within Cuddle Comfort and outside.
1) Photos. You must have a good set, including several of your face. Ideally, at least one for each of: full body; selfie; not selfie; smiling; and being affectionate to a some mammal who clearly isn't a partner. 5 - 7 in total.
2) Profile. Several paragraphs. Show something of yourself, I mean really something.
3) Forum. Join in. Be nice. It's ok to PM people as long as you are polite, friendly, and have something worth saying. If you are too scared to join in the forum .... do it anyway.
4) Read all of @respectful's excellent posts at the top of the Frequently Asked Questions thread, at least two or three times over the course of a few days.
5) Arrange your first cuddle with a professional. Choose carefully, focussing on Karma and profile text. Ignore looks and other irrelevant factors. This is not necessarily a smooth process, but there is plenty of advice scattered around the forum. Treat the professional somewhat as you would a friendly aunt who you adore and admire and respect enormously.
Read these two excellent posts by @xandriarain:
Ten things your professional cuddler wants you to know
How to save money on professional cuddling
After the session, politely ask if the professional would consider exchanging feedback with you. It is their right to say no without explaining. (Some people prefer not to use Karma, for all sorts of reasons.) If they are willing, then post something true and nice about them within 24 hours. Do not mislead people who may rely on that Karma. Do not 'trade' Karma: you leaving Karma for them, and them leaving Karma for you, are two totally separate things.
6) Assuming the first session went well, arrange a second session. In any event, arrange a session with a different professional.
7) Along the way, both from the forum and professionals, collect Friends. Always ask first: again, people use the Friends function in different ways.
8) Take your time. Let the benefits of touch and cuddling start to come through. Use that benefit to improve your diet, exercise, access to sunlight, or something. Try and get a virtuous circle going.
9) If there are no suitable professionals near you, book online sessions with people further away. Yes there is such a thing as a virtual cuddle. Again, do your homework and choose carefully. Some professionals tour: watch for them coming to your area.
10) Keep exploring the professional cuddling world until you have established relationships with two or three professionals. By that I mean you have cuddled each one at least twice and you have mutually agreed to meet again.
Steps 1 - 10 will take at least several weeks, and more likely several months.
If it's not working, the problem is you. Put a sock in it, and reflect on your own ignorance, prejudice and assumptions.
Remember that professional cuddling is stupidly cheap. Most people are simply not capable of doing the job that professionals do, and most of those that could would be horrified at how little money they would make from it once you account for all the factors. If you are the client of a good professional you are a lucky, lucky person.
If it's a lot of money for you - and it is for many people - that's something to do with you, not the professional. I discovered professional cuddlers a couple of years before I found Cuddle Comfort. The price I paid was £65 for an hour. (Think US$65.) In those days it took me about three months to save up such a fortune, To this day the longest professional session I've ever had is ninety minutes.
So, let us assume that you now have some forum friends, and some good professional cuddling relationships, and you have spent some time thinking about what cuddling is, and what it means, and how your own prejudices relate to it. You have read every word of advice the site has to offer, and thought about it. You have learned how to behave in a professional cuddling environment.
11) Now, and only now, are you ready to write to potential enthusiast cuddle buddies. Identify two or three suitable people, and draft first messages to them. Be brief, polite and friendly. The messages should be unique to the recipients. Do not suggest meeting or cuddling - you are just trying to open a conversation. Even at a dating event you wouldn't go up to somebody and ask them for sex or marriage: you would simply introduce yourself and ask a conventional question.
Do not send these messages. Show them to somebody, preferably of the gender you are writing to - friend, family or forum pal. Ask their advice and listen to it. Sleep on it if needs be, and revise the messages.
Do not send the revised messages. Use what you have learned to write to less likely cuddle buddies - further away, or haven't logged on for three weeks, or somebody who seems not especially compatible for you. You are practising. Once you have practised, and learnt, then you can write to the people you really want to write to.
If one person in twenty writes back, you're doing fine. At this stage all you are trying to do is have a conversation. Remember the basic rule of conversation: say something interesting about yourself, and then ask them a relevant question. If it's going well after a few messages, then say something like "Would you like to talk about meeting up?"
The etiquette for the first meeting I'll leave for another post.
Remember, the cuddling community and this website rewards patience, effort, thoughtfulness, self-awareness and respectfulness.
Good luck!
TL:DR
Learn what cuddling is and how it works
Have a great profile
Book some professional cuddles first
Be respectful