{"id":75458,"date":"2022-03-02T16:59:29","date_gmt":"2022-03-02T16:59:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marriage.com\/advice\/?p=75458"},"modified":"2023-03-02T21:45:59","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T21:45:59","slug":"psychology-behind-love-and-romance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marriage.com\/advice\/love\/psychology-behind-love-and-romance\/","title":{"rendered":"The Psychology Behind Love and Romance"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Couple<\/p>\n

What is the psychology of love? <\/span>Falling in love<\/span><\/a> is often considered one of the most exciting yet daunting moments in one’s life. After all, it’s such a complex experience and brings up so many questions, such as “why do we fall in love” and “how do we fall in love.”<\/span><\/p>\n

It’s one of the most common human experiences, yet it’s not as well-defined as others. There have even been numerous attempts over the years to understand what love is and why and how it happens. However, the answers can still be unclear.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, what is love? Can it even be defined or explained? Let’s find out and learn more about the psychology of love and relationships in this article.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>The chemistry and psychology of love and attraction<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Is falling in love just psychological, or is it physical? Many think of falling in love as a purely emotional or psychological experience. While psychology and relationships are considered closely related, the truth is, falling in love is as physical an experience as it is emotional.<\/span><\/p>\n

You’ll notice the physical signs even during the initial stages of attraction – racing heart, increased energy, sweaty palms, narrower focus, lightheadedness, among many others.<\/span><\/p>\n

These physical changes accompany the emotional changes you undergo when you feel attracted to someone or start falling in love with them. However, your body isn’t the only one that experiences these changes when you fall in love; your brain undergoes them, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

These physical signs of attraction are actually caused <\/span>by<\/span><\/i> the changes in your brain. In this case, your brain is flooded with several feel-good neurochemicals when you fall in love.<\/span><\/p>\n

These include chemicals like dopamine, oxytocin, norepinephrine, and phenylethylamine, all of which play different roles in our bodies’ processes, not just when we fall in love.<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, dopamine, which has been associated with the giddy feeling we experience during the first stages of attraction, also affects different functions of our brains. These include aspects like motivation, learning, attention, and mood.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, dopamine is also directly related to our brain’s reward system and our experiences with pleasure. In this case, when we perceive a greater reward with a task, there’s usually an increase in our brains’ dopamine levels.<\/span><\/p>\n

To understand more about the role of hormones in falling in love, watch this video.<\/span><\/p>\n