Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other
Individuals in the early stage of intense romantic love show many symptoms of substance and non-substance or behavioral addictions, including euphoria, craving, tolerance, emotional and physical dependence, withdrawal and relapse. We have proposed that romantic love is a natural (and often positive...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2016-05-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00687/full |
| _version_ | 1818129120849035264 |
|---|---|
| author | Helen eFisher Xiaomeng eXu Arthur eAron Lucy L. Brown |
| author_facet | Helen eFisher Xiaomeng eXu Arthur eAron Lucy L. Brown |
| author_sort | Helen eFisher |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Individuals in the early stage of intense romantic love show many symptoms of substance and non-substance or behavioral addictions, including euphoria, craving, tolerance, emotional and physical dependence, withdrawal and relapse. We have proposed that romantic love is a natural (and often positive) addiction that evolved from mammalian antecedents by four million years ago as a survival mechanism to encourage hominin pair-bonding and reproduction, seen cross-culturally today in Homo sapiens. Brain scanning studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) support this view: feelings of intense romantic love engage regions of the brain’s reward system, specifically dopamine-rich regions, including the ventral tegmental area, also activated during drug and/or behavioral addiction. Thus, because the experience of romantic love shares reward pathways with a range of substance and behavioral addictions, it may influence the drug and/or behavioral addiction response. Indeed, a study of overnight abstinent smokers has shown that feelings of intense romantic love attenuate brain activity associated with cigarette cue-reactivity. Could socially rewarding experiences be therapeutic for drug and/or behavioral addictions? We suggest that self expanding experiences like romance and expanding one’s knowledge, experience and self-perception, may also affect drug and/or behavioral addiction behaviors. Further, because feelings of romantic love can progress into feelings of calm attachment, and because attachment engages more plastic forebrain regions, there is a rationale for therapies that may help substance and/or behavioral addiction by promoting activation of these forebrain systems through long-term, calm, positive attachments to others, including group therapies. Addiction is considered a negative (harmful) disorder that appears in a population subset; while romantic love is often a positive (as well as negative) state experienced by almost all humans. Thus, researchers have not categorized romantic love as a chemical or behavioral addiction. But by embracing data on romantic love, it’s classification as an evolved, natural, often positive but also powerfully negative addiction, and its neural similarity to many substance and non-substance addictive states, clinicians may develop more effective therapeutic approaches to alleviate a range of the addictions, including heartbreak--an almost universal human experience that can trigger stalking, clinical depression, suicide, homicide and other crimes of passion. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:44:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9ae7b7229d78431e82d6ce3a0623bcf1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:44:06Z |
| publishDate | 2016-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-9ae7b7229d78431e82d6ce3a0623bcf12022-12-22T01:15:30ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782016-05-01710.3389/fpsyg.2016.00687190300Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each otherHelen eFisher0Xiaomeng eXu1Arthur eAron2Lucy L. Brown3Indiana UniversityIdaho State UniversityStony Brook UniversityEinstein College of MedicineIndividuals in the early stage of intense romantic love show many symptoms of substance and non-substance or behavioral addictions, including euphoria, craving, tolerance, emotional and physical dependence, withdrawal and relapse. We have proposed that romantic love is a natural (and often positive) addiction that evolved from mammalian antecedents by four million years ago as a survival mechanism to encourage hominin pair-bonding and reproduction, seen cross-culturally today in Homo sapiens. Brain scanning studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) support this view: feelings of intense romantic love engage regions of the brain’s reward system, specifically dopamine-rich regions, including the ventral tegmental area, also activated during drug and/or behavioral addiction. Thus, because the experience of romantic love shares reward pathways with a range of substance and behavioral addictions, it may influence the drug and/or behavioral addiction response. Indeed, a study of overnight abstinent smokers has shown that feelings of intense romantic love attenuate brain activity associated with cigarette cue-reactivity. Could socially rewarding experiences be therapeutic for drug and/or behavioral addictions? We suggest that self expanding experiences like romance and expanding one’s knowledge, experience and self-perception, may also affect drug and/or behavioral addiction behaviors. Further, because feelings of romantic love can progress into feelings of calm attachment, and because attachment engages more plastic forebrain regions, there is a rationale for therapies that may help substance and/or behavioral addiction by promoting activation of these forebrain systems through long-term, calm, positive attachments to others, including group therapies. Addiction is considered a negative (harmful) disorder that appears in a population subset; while romantic love is often a positive (as well as negative) state experienced by almost all humans. Thus, researchers have not categorized romantic love as a chemical or behavioral addiction. But by embracing data on romantic love, it’s classification as an evolved, natural, often positive but also powerfully negative addiction, and its neural similarity to many substance and non-substance addictive states, clinicians may develop more effective therapeutic approaches to alleviate a range of the addictions, including heartbreak--an almost universal human experience that can trigger stalking, clinical depression, suicide, homicide and other crimes of passion.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00687/fullCaudate NucleusDopamineVentral Tegmental AreaAddictionRewardromantic love |
| spellingShingle | Helen eFisher Xiaomeng eXu Arthur eAron Lucy L. Brown Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other Frontiers in Psychology Caudate Nucleus Dopamine Ventral Tegmental Area Addiction Reward romantic love |
| title | Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| title_full | Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| title_fullStr | Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| title_full_unstemmed | Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| title_short | Intense, Passionate Romantic Love: A natural addiction? How the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| title_sort | intense passionate romantic love a natural addiction how the fields that investigate romance and substance abuse can inform each other |
| topic | Caudate Nucleus Dopamine Ventral Tegmental Area Addiction Reward romantic love |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00687/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT helenefisher intensepassionateromanticloveanaturaladdictionhowthefieldsthatinvestigateromanceandsubstanceabusecaninformeachother AT xiaomengexu intensepassionateromanticloveanaturaladdictionhowthefieldsthatinvestigateromanceandsubstanceabusecaninformeachother AT arthurearon intensepassionateromanticloveanaturaladdictionhowthefieldsthatinvestigateromanceandsubstanceabusecaninformeachother AT lucylbrown intensepassionateromanticloveanaturaladdictionhowthefieldsthatinvestigateromanceandsubstanceabusecaninformeachother |