While you certainly deserve a hug and I understand changes in your loved ones are tough to bear, you may want to consider that empathy is a bit of a two way street. I’ve discussed possible reasons that expression of empathy is stunted in people with schizophrenia. I’ll search for a link to that thread and add with an edit later on.
As far as hugs go, they may present a level of vulnerability or stimulation that are harder for him to bear in his present state. Schizophrenia is a disorder of thought AND emotion, and in my experience it makes it harder to link the two. I remember having workmates remind me of the importance of pleasantries like a good morning or girlfriends having to prompt or remind me of hugs and kisses and so on. It’s as if there’s a disconnect of awareness and a lack of rhythm and synchronization to emotional and physical actions.
Your partner may be forever changed by their illness and you and he may need to adapt, I know I did. In my case I had to start from scratch, as my family is low on expressed emotion and I developed SZA before I had significant dating, social or vocational history. It’s similar to experiences that autistic people have with intimacy and social closeness. I’m reminded of the HBO movie, Temple Grandin, and the story of her “hugging machine” which gave her the experience of being hugged outside of her fight or flight response to receiving hugs from others. It’s an excellent movie, and I see overlap in challenges of people on the autistic and SMI spectrums. Grandin’s mother as portrayed in the movie is a model of a fearless caregiver. Here’s a relevant clip:
It’s possible to work through these deficits with careful prompting and exposure. I took up acting in part to bridge the gap between thought, emotion and physicality, and over time I did get better at it— but it takes work. Unfortunately, as with most caregiving, the lion’s share of the work is the caregiver’s burden. So if you feel you need a hug, don’t expect your partner to read your mind, ask for one. And if your partner has trouble meeting this need, work toward it or ask a friend.
Edit: here’s that thread on lack of empathy…