I admit it: I was a handshakeaholic. First as a teacher, then a journalist and, finally, a newspaper executive, I did a lot of handshaking during my life, but in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, I may never shake another hand for the rest of my days.

I sheepishly admit that until 30 years ago I would even greet my three adult sons with a handshake rather than a warm hug and kiss as I have done since then. (By the way, I have to thank my late wife, Marie, for opening my eyes to my irrational formality.)

I believed, as many men of my era did, that showing too much emotion was a sign of weakness, a demerit on the macho signals we wanted to send. The same went for crying in public. My father, a northern Italian immigrant, was stoic when it came to hugging and kissing, especially another male. His southern Italian countrymen, however, were much more demonstrative in their greeting of male family members.

Not only was I a compulsive handshaker, but I also rated the perceived quality of the return handshake. This was especially true of the hundreds of job candidates that I interviewed during my newspaper career.

Early on, I was taught that the handshake was one of the first impressions that a prospective employer formed of a job applicant in a face-to-face setting.

I am afraid that I took it to the extreme. When I interviewed with Don Diehl, publisher of the then Easton Express (now The Express-Times), as we shook hands, he yelled out in pain. That is how firmly I gripped his hand. I thought that I had automatically disqualified myself, but I guess I had some redeeming characteristics, because I was hired and remained with the organization for more than 25 years.

After that experience, I came up with guidelines for a quality handshake: firm but not bone-crushing, shake but don’t pump a well, grasp a hand for a second or two but don’t linger, and maintain eye contact but don’t creep out the other person.

I suspect that others who had routinely shaken hands until this pandemic hit are thinking the way I do. When Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said during a recent national briefing that it might be a good time to eliminate the handshake, it got me thinking about what to do post-pandemic.

Of course, even before the start of this pandemic, there were well-known personality germaphobes who never shook hands for fear of touching people who did not observe sound sanitary practices.

Among the best-known is “America’s Got Talent” regular Howie Mandel, who popularized the fist bump. Since the pandemic hit, some have tried an awkward elbow bump, foot bump or other alternative.

Admittedly these types of bumps come off as being way too informal for some occasions, which gave rise to a gesture that consists of pressing our palms and fingers together vertically while bowing slightly. This is intended to convey a general greeting of goodwill.

One of the consequences of this pandemic will be our fixation on cleanliness. I monitored my hand-washing activity for a weeklong period recently and found that I am now averaging 18 daily, or about four times as many pre-pandemic.

Even when our society begins to emerge from its draconian lockdown, many if not most of us will continue to refrain from shaking hands and hugging and kissing. Not only do we want to stay safe, but we would be devastated if we unwittingly transmitted this novel coronavirus to a loved one or close friend.

What I plan to do when I meet someone is to give a slight nod while making eye contact and express an enthusiastic verbal greeting.

I was surprised to find that the hand grasp dates to the fifth century B.C. in Ancient Greece, where it was a peace symbol that showed that neither person had a weapon.

The handshake as we know it today is believed to have started in medieval Europe when knights would engage in the practice to shake loose hidden weapons.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com