Makers Magazine - Spring 2024 - Flipbook - Page 43
Again don’t fret! The important part of this last sentence is it’s responsibility to
increase the rate and force of heart contractions. Thus, this also materializes
itself like serotonin, but through the sensation we’ve come to know as
“butterflies in the stomach”. When we come in contact with the individual
we have feelings for, a reduction of blood occurs in the stomach creating the
sensation of fluttering while at the same time causing the adrenal glands
to release norepinephrine resulting in a higher heart rate and increased
perspiration. Overall, the “in love” sensation can be scientifically explained
through our brain’s connection to the body which ultimately allows for the
response of monoamines.
THE THIRD STAGE IS CALLED
“ATTACHMENT”
This is another stage Hollywood attempts to portray, but has difficulty because
social bonds are not maintained by the “in love” feelings. Nevertheless, it’s during
this stage two key hormones known as Oxytocin and Vasopressin are released by
the nervous system. Oxytocin is involved in social recognition and attachments
as well as trust formation. However, Vasopressin has also been connected to
social attachment as it has recently been researched in the prairie vole. According
to BBC Science when scientists introduced Vasopressin receptors to male prairie
voles they reformed their ways by fixating on one female and choosing to mate
with only her — even when other females showed interest. This link found
between prairie voles and Vasopressin has crossed over into humans as both
Vasopressin and Oxytocin have been discovered to increase remarkably in the
brain during orgasm. Overall, these hormones are both vital in developing social
attachments which can affect the durability of a relationship. Thus, it is not
the “in love” sensation which gives love it’s stability, but the social bond formed
during the “attachment” stage.
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