Falling in Love Is a Mental Disorder Explained by Science
The strong correlation between schizophrenia and falling in love
Everyone falls in love at least once in their life. This is the one thing we all have in common.
Falling in love is an involuntary process.
It seems to be unplanned, unpredictable, and uncontrollable.
When we try to put logic into it, we can’t rationally explain why. The ancient Greeks thought love was madness — indeed, lovers can seem to be crazy or at least irrational.
Other cultures invoke bewitching, potions, fate, and other machinations to account for the emotion of love.
For example, my lover Arturo keeps telling me about “the witch who ensorcelled his father and took him away from his mum and himself.” He truly believes in the story.
But, what if I told you that falling in love is actually a mental disorder?
I might sound like a romance killer — I know! But what I’m saying here is true and it is explained by science.
Romantic love, as we think of it, is not true love. It’s a physical process happening in our body similar to the mental disorder that is schizophrenia.
There’s a big difference between “falling in love” and “true love,” and falling in love is a manipulation of your mind, pushing you to reproduce.
Keep reading to learn what I’m talking about.
Love starts in the brain, not in the heart
When we fall in love, our hearts beat faster and stronger, so we associate those symptoms with love.
There is this belief that love comes from the heart. But actually, science has proven that love comes from the intermediate limbic brain. And the chemicals released make the heart beat faster.
Let’s get a bit of human anatomy explanation here. The brain has three parts:
- The old reptilian brain is the most primitive form of the brain. It is the same brain seen in reptiles. It promotes survival by making the heartbeat and lungs breathe. When someone is in a chronic vegetative state, only this part of the brain functions.
- The intermediate limbic brain sits on top of the old reptilian brain. It is a sort of master control room that introduces emotions in our brain. This is the part of the brain related to love.
- And then we have the new brain or neocortex. It sits above and around the intermediate limbic brain and is getting bigger as humans become more intelligent. Speaking, writing, reading, and thinking are all functions of this part of the brain.
Most people believe that love is a feeling coming from the heart, but the truth is that you can’t feel or perceive any emotions in the heart.
It is just a muscle that works as a pump. It has a limited nerve supply and no memory.
The nerves that go from the heart up to the brain are pain fibers that, when stimulated, send a pain signal to the brain. You feel chest pain, irregular heartbeat, and so on.
The heart can’t act on its own; it just does what the brain tells it to do. So all emotions emanate from the brain.
Love comes from the brain and manifests itself in the heart.
Instead of saying “I love you from the bottom of my heart,” we should say “I love you from the center of my intermediate limbic brain.”
Our brain tricks us to act so differently when in love
Is love madness, as Wiliam Shakespeare once said?
Yes.
Because falling in love is a mental disorder with this range of symptoms:
- Exhilaration
- Euphoria
- Increased energy
- Sleeplessness
- Loss of appetite
- Trembling
- Racing heart
- Accelerated breathing
- Anxiety
- Panic
- Despair
Do these symptoms remind you of any mental disorders?
Schizophrenia.
The clinical manifestations of falling in love are the same as schizophrenia.
It is not me saying that. It is science, and more specifically, Dr. Nour in his book, True Love.
When we fall in love, we all act as mild schizophrenics. This is why I can say that love is a mental disorder.
Similarities between love and schizophrenia
Below is a list of behaviors we find in people who fall in love and in people who are schizophrenic.
1. Hoarding
The presence of hoarding behavior among patients with schizophrenia is well documented.
It is a form of compulsion where every little thing is important and must be preserved. The items bring joy from looking back at them and recalling certain memories.
Don’t say you never kept an item from your beloved one — a T-shirt, a simple note from them–and preserve it because it brings you joy!
2. Illusion
Specific abnormalities of vision — illusions — in schizophrenia have been observed.
Illusions are an altered perception of a real stimulus. They are perceived as truth and nothing but the truth.
When you are in love, you think it’s him or her walking in the crowd. You quicken your pace, trying to catch up, just to realize it’s someone who looks just like them from behind. This is an illusion.
3. Delusions
Ninety percent of schizophrenics have experienced delusions, for example, believing they are being persecuted.
Delusions are fixed false beliefs or feelings. They have no basis in reality.
When we are in love, we are full of false beliefs. “Maybe she doesn’t find me that attractive?” “Oh my god, I’m sure he knows I slept with his best friend last year!”
4. Paranoia
“They are there to get me” is a form of paranoia observed in schizophrenics. Paranoia is when the perception of a threat far exceeds reality.
Jealousy is a form of paranoia.
In women, it might be the unconscious awareness of the limited eggs they have and the desire to avoid losing any eggs while waiting for another mate. In men, it might be avoiding his mate becoming pregnant from another man.
5. Unclear or confused thinking
“I moved to New York after college. What are you eating for lunch?” is the type of unclear thinking you will hear when conversing with someone with schizophrenia.
Or imagine if you go to a job interview wearing flip-flops. This is unclear or confused thinking.
When you are in love, most of the time, you have a hard time seeing things clearly. You ignore the red flags even if they are right there in front of your eyes.
6. Obsession
Repeatedly thinking about the same subject is involuntary and can’t be stopped consciously. These are intrusive obsessions.
Cleaning or checking are all obsessive behaviors observed in schizophrenics.
And when you’re in love, those sleepless nights reviewing what they said to you and what it could possibly mean. This is an obsession.
7. Compulsion
This is the urge to do certain things against one’s will. Hoarding, repeating, or arranging are compulsive behaviors observed in schizophrenics.
But have you ever found yourself texting your loved one in the middle of the night, pushed by an urge as if you believed that if you didn’t do it right then, it would be all over? That is a compulsion.
8. Euphoria
This is the sense of extreme joy, happiness to the point that someone is laughing at nothing. They keep talking and giggling to themselves.
If you see someone giggling alone in the street, they are either in love or they are schizophrenic.
So, what’s the purpose of this article? Destroying your views on romantic love?
Yes, a little bit of that, perhaps.
But my main point is to show you that true love comes after recovering from the symptoms of “falling in love.”
This is when you see your partner with clarity and still make the conscious choice to love them.
What you’re feeling now is not true love; it is simply the symptoms of the mental disorder that is falling in love.
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