The Top Signs You Have Fallen Out of Love

While I am not one to hold pessimistic or bitter views on the subject of love, I do feel it is important for all of us who are in relationships to recognize whether we are in a relationship “comfort zone”, or whether we are no longer in love with our partner. While rationalizing and “settling” can serve us well temporarily, long-term happiness only comes when denial is faced head on, and when we realize that it’s just not fair to either partner to stay when deep inside we know it isn’t right. Allow me to explain further. We have all heard of fairy-tale couples that are in love from the second they lay eyes and fluttering eyelashes upon each other up until the day one of them tragically passes away. Unfortunately, in real life, that feeling of being “in love” often fades after a period of time. No, it’s not like your love for that person suddenly vanishes, but that butterflies-in-the-stomach, sweaty-palmed, rapid heartbeat feeling wanes-and the chemicals within your body are greatly involved in this phenomenon. When you first fall in love, your body goes through a variety of changes. “PEA or phenylethylamine is a chemical that speeds up the flow of information between nerve cells. Also, involved in chemistry are dopamine and norepinephrine, chemical cousins of amphetamines. Dopamine makes us feel good and norepinephrine stimulates the production of adrenaline. It makes our heart race! These three chemicals combine to give us infatuation or chemistry. It is why new lovers feel euphoric and energized, and float on air.” (E. Crystal, 2006). But, how do you know whether the chemical reactions in your body just settled down or if you have actually fallen out of love?