8 Effects of Love on Your Brain and Body

In a hazy state of love, people seem to grow wings and hatch butterflies in their tummies. Well, from a scientific point of view, our body and the processes taking place in it during the infatuation phase are really special. And most likely, you have no idea what amazing things your trusty old body and mind go through when you’re in love.

1. Separation Anxiety

Why do we experience boundless happiness when close to our loved ones and a terrible void when they’re not around? Here’s the thing: being in love and doing drugs allegedly activate the same areas of the brain. Scientists discovered that when the subjects looked at pictures of their partners, their dopaminergic system activated, just like people who take illegal substances. The lovers also released chemicals like dopamine, oxytocin, and adrenaline that cause euphoria and vasopressin, which can cause aggression and loss of control. Love is a drug, and now you know why.

2. Increased Heart Rate and Sweaty Palms

When we fall in love, blood flows to the brain’s pleasure center increases, releasing adrenaline and norepinephrine. In other words, your sweaty palms are very much normal whenever you see your crush. Just don’t go shaking their hand all of a sudden.

3. Fluttering Feeling

The feeling that many people call “butterflies in the stomach” is quite real. After all, when in love, we release not only oxytocin — the “happiness hormone,” but also cortisol — the “stress hormone.” The latter is why we experience anxiety and start asking unnecessary and outrageous questions. Cortisol also constricts the blood vessels around the intestines, resulting in that fluttering feeling.