One morning, when I made a rare appearance outside my bedroom to get a cup of coffee, my dad made the mistake of trying to engage with the lovelorn recluse who had replaced his daughter by asking me something innocuous like, “So what did this guy do for work?” to which I replied by bursting into tears in front of the Keurig. Because these relationships aren’t clearly defined and because one partner is usually more emotionally invested than the other, the level of affection, attention, and otherwise positive romantic reinforcement you receive from the object of your obsession can vary significantly, setting you and your romantically infatuated brain up for a roller-coaster ride of high highs and low lows. Thus, when that relationship ends, you’re basically in a state of withdrawal, says therapist Lindsey Brock, founder of the Breakup Therapist: “When you’re no longer getting your dopamine hits, you crash, hence feelings of depression and anxiety over the person that gave you that high.”
Author: Kayla Kibbe
Published at: 2025-11-18 22:11:00
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