Love, actually, is complicated.......
While poets and songwriters put romantic thoughts and feelings into eloquent words, love remains a complicated mystery. Psychologists and anthropologists have a lot to say about how and why people fall in love, and most importantly, the science behind it all. We dug through pages of studies and texts to uncover these surprising psychological facts about love.
Being in love changes you
If you find yourself watching romantic comedies when you used to only prefer thrillers or if you suddenly love Mexican food when you didn’t before, you might want to credit your partner. A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that people in love often have different interests and personality traits after entering into their respective relationships. One of the study’s authors suggested that people have a more diverse sense of self and an increased self-esteem after falling in love.
Love can be a pain reliever
After some studies were conducted it found that intense, passionate feelings of love can be used as an effective pain reliever, acting similar to illicit drugs like cocaine. Researchers asked 15 undergraduate students to bring in photos of their romantic partner and photos of an acquaintance. Researchers then showed the pictures to their subjects while zapping their hands with a computer-controlled thermal stimulator to cause mild pain. They found that seeing the image of their loved ones reduced the level of pain they felt. So if you’re about to donate blood and don’t prefer needles, perhaps you should have a picture of someone you love on hand
Being in love can decrease appetite
When someone is in the attraction phase of love, high levels of dopamine and norepinephrine are released. Dopamine is known as one of the happiness hormones, and these chemicals can make people feel giddy and even euphoric. This reaction can also lead to decreased appetite and insomnia, which means you can actually be so “in love” that you can’t eat or sleep well.
Love is actually 3 feelings in 1
There’s a reason love is so complicated and indescribable — it’s actually three feelings in one. According to a team of scientists led by famous biological anthropologist Helen Fisher, romantic love can actually be broken down into three sensations: lust, attraction and attachment. And each feeling is characterized by its own set of hormones stemming from the brain.