Cover by Lori Huang

So Pick Me, Choose Me, Love Me

By Anannya Pushkarna

Your heart pulsates so hard you can feel it in your temples. Your cheeks are flushed. Butterflies threaten to rip from your stomach, and every limb trembles just so slightly. Adrenaline rushes through your blood, and suddenly every love song in the world makes complete sense and Beyoncé’s ‘Crazy in Love’ plays in your mind over and over. For centuries, scientists have wondered what this feeling of love is, and while you may think the heart is the culprit, it’s actually the brain that seems to control these feelings, making you fall head over heels for someone. Although multiple theories exist about why we fall in love, science has taken a step towards figuring out what happens when we fall in love.

Fifteen years ago, Helen Fisher led groundbreaking research in which she explored the functional MRI scans of the brains of humans in love in the hopes of understanding how our brain is affected when we form attachments and seek pleasure. The study revealed that approximately twelve different regions of the brain work together to give us those butterflies and giddiness that are hallmarks of being in love. From a little crush to the first heartbreak, these brain areas release a pantomime of chemicals that affect our mood and behavior. These chemicals are known as neurotransmitters. Multiple neurotransmitters were identified in this study, which allowed scientists to understand the intricacies of the physiological process of falling in love. 

Fisher’s study unveiled the first neurotransmitter involved in love: dopamine. According to the study, dopamine involved in this process is located in the caudate nucleus and the ventral tegmental area, both of which act as our brains’ reward centers. This feel-good neurotransmitter gives us a taste of both our virtues and our vices. It engenders us to feel good and excited about love and sex, while at the same time it produces a sense of addiction to the emotional connection with the person we love. Crazy in Love may not have been an over-exaggeration! Other physical substances can also cause the release of dopamine. These include chocolate, alcohol, nicotine, and cocaine — cue the breakup montage of stuffing your face with chocolate and ice cream, while crying over Dirty Dancing because it turns out that can actually make you feel better.

Our next candidate is the hormone norepinephrine, which is synthesized from dopamine itself. Released from the adrenal glands of our kidneys, norepinephrine is passed through our bloodstream to act on our autonomic nervous system that controls our involuntary bodily movements. Early stages of romantic relationships are often accompanied with giddiness, euphoria, loss of appetite, and increased heartbeat, in all of which norepinephrine plays a role. It stimulates the release of adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, and activates our sympathetic nervous system which causes many changes such as accelerated heart rate, constriction of blood vessels, dilation of the pupils. A study conducted by Mezzacappa, Katkin, and Palmer in 1999 revealed “participants that had been elicited the epinephrine showed great arousal as well as emotional intensity, especially in the fear and amusement.” Epinephrine gives insight to the emotional rollercoaster, often experienced when in love, that is equivalent to how our bodies respond to fright or our life’s beer and skittles. These two chemicals take part in this fight-or-flight response, balancing the rosy pictures of love our brain paints.

After we have conquered the first date, awkward hand-holding, and physically intimate moments, the hypothalamus and pituitary gland purveys oxytocin. Also known as the cuddle-hormone, it allows us to form attachments with our partners and children. Found especially during the later stages of a relationship, this hormone enhances bonding and produces the positive feelings we experience in the company of those we love. So next time you stare into the eyes of your beloved, it will be oxytocin taking center stage.

Many other neurotransmitters fire in our brain when Cupid’s arrow strikes us, but these primarily control our bodies and our feelings. Fisher’s continuing work of research gives us a glance at our body’s internal reaction to love and how we form this chemistry with our special someone. Interestingly, all humans may exhibit love differently to each other, but to a scientist, the scans all look the same — it’s all in our heads!