Love is something that many people will feel in their lifetimes. In many cases, people believe it is what separates us from animals! However, this really can vary – as there are plenty of animals out there who mate for life! Crucially, love means different things to different people. It fuels our lives and impacts the choices and changes we make in our careers and in our long term lifestyles. Therefore – it really is at the heart of all we do, if you’ll pardon the pun.
There are many different kinds of love, however, in this fact file, we are going to focus on a few figures and astonishing ideas to help you look at the psychology of it all in a whole new light. Love is something which has driven people for centuries – let’s take a look at a few fun facts about love to see if we can break down this phenomenon even further.
1. Want to find yourself?
It’s thought that falling in love and connecting with someone romantically will also help to put you in touch with your own feelings and emotions. This means that, on the whole, connecting romantically might actually help you become a better person. You may become more selfless and may become more well-rounded.
2. You might have to become self-assured before you find love.
It’s thought that if you can’t love yourself, you won’t be able to love someone else deeply enough. That doesn’t always follow, but studies do show that people with strong self-esteem and self-worth will likely build stronger relationships. This is likely a given – people with these values are more confident and assured in themselves, on the whole.
3. Long-term couplings are right for millions of people.
Long-term relationships may not work for everyone, but they can help many couples thrive. This is because both sides of the relationship may continue to build up ideal versions of their partners while they are apart for so long. What’s more, if the partnership is right, it will continue to endure!
4. Don’t want to go public?
It’s thought that keeping a relationship or romantic link secret from other people might actually help to heighten the sensation of love and romance. Therefore, if you’re really not keen on going fully public yet, it might actually be to your benefit.
5. There’s a social aspect to love and attraction.
It’s thought that there are patterns in how people of perceived attractiveness find each other and end up together. Many people seem to feel attracted to those who are on the same social standing as them, which, of course, can affect general attractiveness.
6. Humility is just as important as confidence.
While confidence is a major player in attractiveness and finding love, so is humility. There is much to be said to separate confidence and the inner ego. Most people – men and women will likely look for genuinely humble partners, not just those who act in such a way to help boost their inner egos.
7. Rom-coms could help you bond.
Believe it or not, it is thought that couples who regularly watch romantic comedies together regularly are more likely to form deeper connections. Yes, they can be cheesy, but if you and a partner really enjoy watching them together, you might just find that your love bond grows stronger!
8. Listen to your butterflies!
There really is such a thing as butterflies in your stomach. They aren’t physical butterflies in any sense of the word, however, the feeling you get when you see someone you fall in love with is a genuine phenomenon, not just a fallacy. It’s thought that your spiking adrenaline levels are to blame. It’s to do with fight or flight, on the whole.
9. Love seems to be a human connection.
Love is, ultimately, something that the vast majority of people are built to strive for. As stated, many believe that it is largely what separates humans from other animals. This is to such an extent that it is an innate drive for us, just as much as we feel the need to eat and drink. The vast majority of people, on the whole, feel the need to be with a partner.
10. Not everyone falls in love.
Love isn’t something that everyone experiences in their lifetime, and this isn’t always a case of ‘just being unlucky’. There are people who genuinely cannot experience the phenomenon. This is likely as a result of a condition called hypopituitarism. This condition is thought to impact a wide variety of psychological areas, though it can balance out with careful treatment and therapy.
11. Love could heal all.
Love is thought to help ease pain and to help you heal. This ties in with the idea that being in love can help to ease physical anguish as well as psychological concerns. Of course, it will likely need to be requited by default!
12. Similarity is attractive!
While plenty of people fall for complete opposites of themselves, there are trends and studies which suggest that we are much more likely to fall in love with people who look similar to ourselves than anyone else. This not only goes for superficialities, but also for metabolism and even internal organ strength.
13. You can feel love through a static image.
It’s thought that merely looking at a photo of someone you love can release hormones and create mood-elevating or even pain-killing effects. Therefore, if you are ever feeling anguished, and you have a photo of a loved one to hand, that might just be what you need.
14. Confidence is the key to love.
Love falls down to confidence. Time and time again, studies show that confident people, not just those who are conventionally attractive, find partners easily. You simply have to believe in yourself if you really want to find the one – though that might not always be so simple!
15. Cuddling is good for you!
It’s thought that cuddling up to a partner can help to generate a hormone which is beneficial to your happiness and wellbeing. This hormone is oxytocin, and it’s likely that you’ll release this when cuddling or snuggling up to someone you really love.
16. There are algorithms that focus on love.
There is supposedly a formula out there which can help to work out how love actually calculates. Believe it or not, it’s a case of intimacy adding to attachment and care. Of course, different types of love have different formulas, too.
17. Nerves react oddly to love.
Believe it or not, for the first year you spend in love with someone, your nerves actually grow. This is thanks to proteins thriving when you are romantically involved.
18. Love can be compulsive.
Infatuation is a real problem for many people, and it can genuinely tie in with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD. This is because you are likely to have the same serotonin in your body when obsessively in love as you are when you are obsessing over order and preciseness in your everyday life. It will also tie in with anxiety, too.
19. Do you believe in love at first sight?
Love at first sight might not be as trite as many people imagine. While it takes years for you to truly get to know someone and to love them on a deeper level, it’s thought that you might actually make up your mind on whether or not you like them in the first four minutes of you having met them.
20. It’s about the journey!
Studies continue to show that much happiness attained over a lifetime can tie in directly with the love you experience. If not, the need for happiness will at least tie in for searching for love, too. Believe it or not, studies suggest that just looking or searching for love will be enough to bring you happiness or feelings of strong fulfilment, at the very least.
21. Another cliche come true!
Love is blind – and science agrees. In fact, science outright dictates that we need to fall blindly in love in or for us all to survive. If you are constantly looking for the perfect partner, you are never going to be able to look beyond imperfections, and therefore, you are never going to form any kind of attachment. Attachment, in terms of evolution and survival, is very important to make sure that you can continue to carry on the species!
22. It pays to be grateful.
Gratitude is a huge part of falling and being in love. If you practice gratitude regularly, you will likely continue to experience the same feelings of happiness and contentment again and again.
23. Online dating is bigger than ever before.
The world of looking for and finding love has definitely changed over the years. While online dating used to be seen as something of a last resort for many people, it is now seen as a major platform for making romantic connections. In fact, it is thought that up to 23% of people in the US will find their long-term partners through an online dating site or app. The world is definitely shrinking!
24. Faith can break people apart.
However, many partnerships end up in disarray due to a lack of faith. It’s thought that up to 60% of married men may be unfaithful, or admit to as much, while 40% applies to married women. However, this really will vary from country to country and culture to culture.
25. Hearts often beat together as one!
Believe it or not, some studies suggest that those deeply in love will likely synchronise their heartbeats. This isn’t always easy to check, but researchers seem to be pretty confident this is the case. We’ll take their word for it!
26. Love comes in many different forms.
There are different types of love, of course, such as those between two different people, and that between a mother and her child. However, science actually dictates that there are chemical connections in this type of love which are hugely similar to those shown throughout romantic attachment. It’s just as deep and true if you fall in love deeply and strongly enough.
27. There is such a thing as a love addiction.
Love is addictive – that much might be pretty obvious to a lot of people! As a result of the hugely positive waves that love can wash over our brains with, many people find it hard to stop falling in love, or to stop pursuing it. This can go some way to explaining unrequited love or infatuations, for example.
28. We often fall for people a lot different to ourselves.
They say that opposites attract, and that’s probably the case. Studies show that people who share too much in common are less likely to build long-term relationships. This is likely as a result of a lack of conflict or even differing interests. Variety is the spice of life, even when you are in a committed, monogamous relationship.
29. Marriage could help you live longer.
Studies continue to suggest that getting married can actually improve your longevity and may improve your overall health throughout your life. Study correlations also suggest that married people are more likely to overcome cancers – though again, this is purely a study, and there are other factors which will come into play.
30. Love can affect your judgement!
Falling in love can affect your ability to judge someone fairly. By this, we mean that if you are starting to fall in love with someone, the part of your brain which normally applies social judgement is likely to take a back seat. Love changes everything, as they say.
FAQs about Love
What is a stronger word than ‘love’?
Love is a strong word in and of itself - but words such as ‘adore’ and ‘cherish’ take things that little bit deeper!
What is love?
Love is described as a deep affection that one person may have for someone else - which is sometimes reciprocated!
How many times do we fall in love?
The average person is thought to fall in love around three times in their life.
Do you know any fun facts about love? Share them in the comments below!
