Humans are naturally wired to enjoy feelings ofloveand affection.
However, some people develop feelings that extend past normal, healthy interest and into love addiction.
Symptoms of Love Addiction
Love addiction looks a little different from person to person.
FilippoBacci / Getty Images
This makes creating and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships especially difficult for people with love addiction.
Other signs are more obvious, such asstalking a love interestor restricting who they interact with.
In fact, the “Diagnostic Manual of Mental Health Disorders” doesn’t recognize it as one.
Researchers drew parallels between the way a person in love and a person addicted to a substance might act.
When you are in love, your brain releases chemical messengers that make you feel good, like dopamine.
These same patterns occur with substance abuse and addiction.
The most common form of therapy used to treat addiction iscognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).
So as with other addictions, recognizing the problem is a difficult but essential first step.
For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.
The good news is that amental health professionalcan help you learn to form healthier relationships with yourself and others.
Sanches M, John VP.
Treatment of love addiction: Current status and perspectives.Eur J Psychiat.
2019;33(1):38-44.
