Most people don't think about what goes on in their brains when they are in love. It's all about the heart, that's what you thought by now, right? The famous Cupid doesn't shoot the brain with his arrow on Valentine's Day – he aims it at the heart! And everything that happens when you are in love, as your heart beats faster and just the sight of that person takes your breath away, can only be described as a big mess of good feelings.
Being in love is more about the brain than the heart! Of course, we all know that the physical heart pumps blood and delivers oxygen and nutrients around the body. But the brain is where it all begins; our emotions, our feelings and yes, even how quickly we fall in love. All the emotions we feel come from the limbic system, which is related to executive functions such as: logic, judgment, reasoning and impulse control. So when we fall in love, blood flow increases to the pleasure center in the brain. At the same time, there is a burst of hormones that cause specific physical and emotional reactions in all of us.
Of course, love manifests in the heart and it's easy to show it when we're in love, but it's our brain that makes the heart react this way.
There are hormones produced by the brain that scientists commonly refer to as increasing or decreasing when someone falls in love: dopamine, noradrenaline, and serotonin.
Dopamine and adrenaline surge when two people fall in love. Dopamine creates the euphoric feelings, while adrenaline and norepinephrine lead to rapid heartbeat, restlessness and general focus on the person we love. Love also lowers serotonin levels, which is a big reason for the "love is blind" theory. In other words, in the beginnings of love, we see only what we want to see.
Love can be felt in the heart, but it begins in the brain and it is this complex organ that makes us experience wonderful and often unforgettable feelings.
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