Love is pure, love is painful, love is sweet and love is dreadful. True love is overwhelming. Our lives depend on it and it often seems like our planet would stop spinning if love didn't exist. Love is something we strive for and something we mourn the loss of.
A lovesick panda once said that "if you're never been hurt, you're either very lucky, or very lonely".
We understand the poetry of the heart, but over the courses of our lives we tend to demystify this precious feeling more and more. We learn about biological processes that cause specific reactions; we learn about cultural influences on how we behave and think about love; we learn about the psychological and physiological processes that make us fall for someone.
1. Monogamous Relationships Exist Throughout The Animal Kingdom
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Even though we often think of ourselves as a faithful species, we're not the only one in the . Wolves, swans, gibbons, black vultures, albatrosses and even termites are just a few of those animals that find a mate for a lifetime.
2. It only takes up to 4 minutes to decide whether you like someone or not
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If you want to make a good impression on someone, you've only got about 4 minutes to do it. It is that it has far more to do with your body language, tone and speed of your voice rather than exactly what you say.
3. When Two Lovers Gaze At Each Others' Eyes, Their Heart Rates Synchronize
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Some extraordinary has found that couples who are in love and bond in a romantic relationship synchronize their heart rates after gazing into each others' eyes for three minutes.
4. Falling In Love Has Neurological Effects Similar To Those Of Cocaine
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Falling in love is much like taking a dose of cocaine, as both experiences affect the brain similarly and trigger a similar sensation of euphoria. found that falling in love produces several euphoria-inducing chemicals that stimulate 12 areas of the brain at the same time.
5. Cuddling Releases Natural Painkillers
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Oxytocin, the so-called love or cuddle hormone, is produced during an embrace or cuddle. The hormone appears in the brain, ovaries and testicles and is thought to be involved in the bonding process. has found that a dose of oxytocin decreases headaches significantly, and for some it even makes the pain go away completely after 4 hours. It's definitely worth trying hug and cuddle medicine before jumping to chemicals and pills.
6. Even Looking At A Picture Of A Loved One Relieves The Pain
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Even though it was long known that the presence of a significant other has a lot to do with patients' improvement, it has been proved that the same goes for even a picture of the beloved. The showed that when experiencing pain, study participants exposed to pictures of their beloved and to distracting word games had their pain reduced far more than those exposed to the same distracting word games and pictures of acquaintances.
7. People At The Same Level Of Attractiveness Are More Likely To End Up Together
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Many psychological and social research indicates that there is a significant pattern in how people choose people to establish romantic relationships with. This pattern is explained by the , which says that people are more attracted to those that they share a level of attractiveness with, or, in other words, are equally socially desirable. Even if successful couples differ in physical attractiveness, one of them usually compensates for it with other socially desirable qualities.
