A Connection to Physical Pain
Anyone who has experienced an unwelcomed breakup can attest that the symptoms can be both emotionally and physically painful. Feelings of loss, disappointment, and rejection can cause physical symptoms such as nausea, insomnia, eating disorders and/or loss of appetite, anxiety that could result in panic attacks, and in extreme cases even thoughts of suicide or homicide.
A recent study actually explains that the pain experienced as a result of heartache and rejection is, indeed, associated with physical pain. The study, conducted at the University of Michigan, found that the same areas of the brain – the secondary somatosensory cortex and the dorsal posterior insula – became activated after study subjects were burned with hot coffee and when they were shown a picture of an ex. (Participation in the study included the prerequisite of having just experienced a serious romantic rejection.) The participants were monitored using an fMRI, or functional magnetic resonance imaging, a practice that measures brain activity by identifying variations in blood flow. The results are provoking: parts of the brain don’t decipher between emotional pain and physical pain.
Anyone who has experienced an unwelcomed breakup can attest that the symptoms can be both emotionally and physically painful. Feelings of loss, disappointment, and rejection can cause physical symptoms such as nausea, insomnia, eating disorders and/or loss of appetite, anxiety that could result in panic attacks, and in extreme cases even thoughts of suicide or homicide.
A recent study actually explains that the pain experienced as a result of heartache and rejection is, indeed, associated with physical pain. The study, conducted at the University of Michigan, found that the same areas of the brain – the secondary somatosensory cortex and the dorsal posterior insula – became activated after study subjects were burned with hot coffee and when they were shown a picture of an ex. (Participation in the study included the prerequisite of having just experienced a serious romantic rejection.) The participants were monitored using an fMRI, or functional magnetic resonance imaging, a practice that measures brain activity by identifying variations in blood flow. The results are provoking: parts of the brain don’t decipher between emotional pain and physical pain.
Heartache Related to Addiction
In a similar study conducted by evolutionary biologist Dr. Helen Fisher, results concluded that heartache is directly related to the areas of the brain that are affected by craving and addiction. In her study, participants who had just experienced heartache were asked to view pictures of their rejecters as well as pictures of random people. When shown the pictures of the people who caused them heartache, specific areas of the brain became stimulated – the ventral tegmental, the insular cortex and anterior cingulated, and the nucleus accumbens and orbitofrontal/prefrontal cortex.
The ventral tegmental has long been linked to romantic love, and previous studies linked emotional pain to the insular cortex and anterior cingulated, which are areas of the brain normally associated with pain and distress. But what’s very fascinating about this study is the neurological activity with the nucleus accumbens and the orbitofrontal/prefrontal cortex, which are the parts of the brain highly affected by craving and addiction – specifically that of the dopaminergic rewards system associated with cocaine addiction.
It’s always been noted that various individuals have obsessive behaviors when it comes to breakups, but prior to Fisher’s study, it was a somewhat inexplicable situation. Her study proves a direct connection between addiction and heartbreak, which, with further inquiry, can explain a great deal about peoples’ compulsive behaviors after a breakup.
Grieving Similar in Heartache and Death
Lastly, it’s important to note that getting over heartache is a process. Grieving of any sort moves in stages, much like moving on after a personal loss such as death. Progression through the stages of heartache will likely include shock and denial, pain and guilt, anger and bargaining, depression and reflection, and finally acceptance
In a similar study conducted by evolutionary biologist Dr. Helen Fisher, results concluded that heartache is directly related to the areas of the brain that are affected by craving and addiction. In her study, participants who had just experienced heartache were asked to view pictures of their rejecters as well as pictures of random people. When shown the pictures of the people who caused them heartache, specific areas of the brain became stimulated – the ventral tegmental, the insular cortex and anterior cingulated, and the nucleus accumbens and orbitofrontal/prefrontal cortex.
The ventral tegmental has long been linked to romantic love, and previous studies linked emotional pain to the insular cortex and anterior cingulated, which are areas of the brain normally associated with pain and distress. But what’s very fascinating about this study is the neurological activity with the nucleus accumbens and the orbitofrontal/prefrontal cortex, which are the parts of the brain highly affected by craving and addiction – specifically that of the dopaminergic rewards system associated with cocaine addiction.
It’s always been noted that various individuals have obsessive behaviors when it comes to breakups, but prior to Fisher’s study, it was a somewhat inexplicable situation. Her study proves a direct connection between addiction and heartbreak, which, with further inquiry, can explain a great deal about peoples’ compulsive behaviors after a breakup.
Grieving Similar in Heartache and Death
Lastly, it’s important to note that getting over heartache is a process. Grieving of any sort moves in stages, much like moving on after a personal loss such as death. Progression through the stages of heartache will likely include shock and denial, pain and guilt, anger and bargaining, depression and reflection, and finally acceptance
