You do not have permission to edit this page, for the following reasons:

This IP address has been blocked from editing Wikipedia.
This does not affect your ability to read Wikipedia pages.
Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong. Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.

The IP address or range 54.163.0.0/16 has been blocked (disabled) by ‪Blablubbs‬ for the following reason(s):

The IP address that you are currently using has been blocked because it is believed to be a web host provider or colocation provider. To prevent abuse, web hosts and colocation providers may be blocked from editing Wikipedia.
You will not be able to edit Wikipedia using a web host or colocation provider because it hides your IP address, much like a proxy or VPN.
We recommend that you attempt to use another connection to edit. For example, if you use a proxy or VPN to connect to the internet, turn it off when editing Wikipedia. If you edit using a mobile connection, try using a Wi-Fi connection, and vice versa. If you are using a corporate internet connection, switch to a different Wi-Fi network. If you have a Wikipedia account, please log in.
If you do not have any other way to edit Wikipedia, you will need to request an IP block exemption.

How to appeal if you are confident that your connection does not use a colocation provider's IP address:
If you are confident that you are not using a web host, you may appeal this block by adding the following text on your talk page: ((unblock|reason=Caught by a colocation web host block but this host or IP is not a web host. My IP address is _______. Place any further information here. ~~~~)). You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated. Your IP address can be determined here. Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the unblock ticket request system. There are several reasons you might be editing using the IP address of a web host or colocation provider (such as if you are using VPN software or a business network); please use this method of appeal only if you think your IP address is in fact not a web host or colocation provider.

Administrators: The IP block exemption user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using web host in exceptional circumstances, and requests should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a CheckUser needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at SPI Quick Checkuser Requests. Unblocking an IP or IP range with this template is highly discouraged without at least contacting the blocking administrator.

This block will expire on 17:28, 10 March 2024.

Even when blocked, you will usually still be able to edit your user talk page, as well as email administrators and other editors.

For information on how to proceed, please read the FAQ for blocked users and the guideline on block appeals. The guide to appealing blocks may also be helpful.

Other useful links: Blocking policy · Help:I have been blocked
Your IP address is in a range that has been blocked on all Wikimedia Foundation wikis. The block was made by ‪Jon Kolbert‬. The reason given is Open proxy/Webhost: See the help page if you are affected .
- Start of block: 18:27, 12 November 2023
- Expiry of block: 18:27, 12 November 2028
Your current IP address is 54.163.179.242. The blocked range is 54.163.0.0/16. Please include all above details in any queries you make. If you believe you were blocked by mistake, you can find additional information and instructions in the No open proxies global policy. Otherwise, to discuss the block please post a request for review on Meta-Wiki. You could also send an email to the stewards VRT queue at stewards@wikimedia.org including all above details.

You can view and copy the source of this page:

((Short description|Negative feelings from experiencing unrequited love or loss of love))
((About|the negative feelings related to love|other uses|Love Sickness (disambiguation)((!))Love Sickness))
((Multiple issues|
((More citations needed|date=April 2014))
((Original research|date=January 2020))
))
((Love sidebar|types))

'''Lovesickness''' refers to an affliction that can produce negative feelings when deeply in love, during the absence of a loved one or when [[Unrequited love|love is unrequited]].

The term "lovesickness" is rarely used in modern medicine and psychology, though new research is emerging on the impact of heartbreak on the body and mind.<ref>((Cite web|date=2017-01-08|title=The science behind a broken heart|url=https://www.health.qld.gov.au/news-events/news/science-behind-a-broken-heart|access-date=2022-01-26|publisher=The State of Queensland (Queensland Health)|language=en-AU))</ref>

== History ==

In the medical texts of ancient Greece and Rome, lovesickness was characterized as a "depressive" disease, "typified by sadness, insomnia, despondency, dejection, physical debility, and blinking."<ref name="jstor.org">((cite journal |last1=Toohey |first1=Peter |title=Love, Lovesickness, and Melancholia |journal=Illinois Classical Studies |date=1992 |volume=17 |issue=2 |pages=265–286 |jstor=23064324 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23064324 |access-date=20 December 2021))</ref> In [[Hippocrates|Hippocratic texts]], "love melancholy" is expected as a result of passionate love.<ref>((cite web|last=Tallis|first=Frank|title=Is Love a Mental Illness?|url=http://www.franktallis.com/lovesick.htm|access-date=26 March 2014|archive-date=12 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912164228/http://www.franktallis.com/lovesick.htm|url-status=dead))</ref> Lovesickness could be cured through the acquisition of the person of interest, such as in the case of Prince Antiochus.<ref>((cite journal |last1=Harris |first1=James C. |title=Lovesickness: Erasistratus Discovering the Cause of Antiochus' Disease |url=https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/1171952 |journal=Archives of General Psychiatry |access-date=20 December 2021 |pages=549 |doi=10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2012.105 |date=1 June 2012|volume=69 |issue=6 |pmid=22664546 ))</ref>

In ancient literature, however, lovesickness manifested itself in "violent and manic" behavior.<ref name="jstor.org"/> In ancient Greece, Euripides' play [[Medea (play)|''Medea'']] portrays Medea's descent into "violence and mania" as a result of her lovesickness for Jason;<ref>((cite book |last1=Toohey |first1=Peter |title=Melancholy, love, and time : boundaries of the self in ancient literature |date=2004 |publisher=University of Michigan Press |location=Ann Arbor |isbn=9780472025596 |pages=59–103 ))</ref> meanwhile, in ancient Rome, Virgil's [[Dido]] has a manic reaction to the betrayal of her lover, Aeneas, and commits suicide.<ref name="Love, Lovesickness, and Melancholia">((cite journal |last1=Toohey |first1=Peter |title=Love, Lovesickness, and Melancholia |journal=University of Illinois Press |date=Fall 1992 |volume=17 |issue=2 |pages=265–286 |jstor=23064324 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23064324 |access-date=20 December 2021))</ref> Dido's case is especially interesting, as the cause of her lovesickness is attributed to the meddling of the gods [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]] and [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]].<ref>((cite book |last1=Virgil |title=The Aeneid |date=1993 |publisher=Harvill |location=London |isbn=978-0002713689))</ref>

In the [[Middle Ages]], unrequited love was considered "a trauma which, for the medieval melancholic, was difficult to relieve."<ref name="theconversation.com">((cite web |last1=Kalas |first1=Laura |title=Being lovesick was a real disease in the Middle Ages |url=https://theconversation.com/being-lovesick-was-a-real-disease-in-the-middle-ages-70919 |website=The Conversation |date=13 February 2017 |language=en))</ref> Treatments included light therapy, rest, exposure to nature, and a diet of lamb, lettuce, fish, eggs, and ripe fruit.<ref name="theconversation.com"/>
[[File:Death of Dido by Joseph Stallaert, c. 1872, oil on canvas - Cinquantenaire Museum - Brussels, Belgium - DSC08548.jpg|thumb|''The Death of Dido'' by Joseph Stallaert, c. 1872, oil on canvas - Cinquantenaire Museum - Brussels, Belgium - DSC08548.jpg]]
In both antiquity and the Middle Ages, lovesickness was often explained by an imbalance in the [[Humorism|humors]]. An excess of black bile, the humor  correlated with melancholy, was usually considered the cause.<ref name="theconversation.com"/><ref name="Love, Lovesickness, and Melancholia"/>

== Modern research ==

In 1915, [[Sigmund Freud]] asked rhetorically, "Isn't what we mean by 'falling in love' a kind of sickness and craziness, an illusion, a blindness to what the loved person is really like?"<ref>Janet Malcolm, ''Psychoanalysis: The Impossible Profession'' (1988) p. 9</ref>

Scientific study on the topic of lovesickness has found that those in love experience a kind of high similar to that caused by illicit drugs such as [[cocaine]]. In the brain, certain [[neurotransmitters]] — [[phenethylamine]], [[dopamine]], [[norepinephrine]] and [[oxytocin]] — elicit the feeling of high from "love" or "falling in love" using twelve different regions of the brain. These neurotransmitters mimic the feeling of [[amphetamine]]s.<ref>((cite web|last=Vaughn|first=Tricia|title=Love sickness is real, and the high it provides looks a lot like cocaine usage|url=http://cw.ua.edu/2013/02/13/love-sickness-is-real-and-the-high-it-provides-looks-a-lot-like-cocaine-usage/|work=Article|publisher=The Crimson White|access-date=28 March 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407101820/http://cw.ua.edu/2013/02/13/love-sickness-is-real-and-the-high-it-provides-looks-a-lot-like-cocaine-usage/|archive-date=7 April 2014))</ref>

On average, a psychologist does not get referrals from general practitioners mentioning "lovesickness", although this can be prevalent through the language of what the patient feels. With the common symptoms of lovesickness being related to other mental diseases, it is often misdiagnosed or it is found that with all the illnesses one could be facing, love is the underlying problem.<ref>((cite book|last=Tallis|first=Frank|title=Love Sick: Love as a Mental Illness|year=2004|publisher=Da Capo Press|edition=Second))</ref> This is incredibly dangerous when one does not seek help or cannot cope because love has been known to be fatal (a consequence of which might be attempted suicide, thus dramatising the ancient contention that love can be fatal).<ref name=autogenerated1>((cite journal | url = http://www.thepsychologist.org.uk/archive/archive_home.cfm/volumeID_18-editionID_115-ArticleID_809-getfile_getPDF/thepsychologist/0205tall.pdf | last = Tallis | first = F | journal = The Psychologist | year = 2005 | volume = 18 | issue = 2 | pages = 72–4 | title = Truly, madly deeply in love | access-date = 2014-04-02 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120505144939/http://www.thepsychologist.org.uk/archive/archive_home.cfm/volumeID_18-editionID_115-ArticleID_809-getfile_getPDF/thepsychologist/0205tall.pdf | archive-date = 2012-05-05 | url-status = dead ))</ref>

In his book ''The Social Nature of Mental Illness'', Len Bowers postulates that although physiological differences exist in the brains of those that are deemed "mentally ill", there are several other criteria that must be met before the differences can be called a malfunction.  It is possible, therefore, that many mental illnesses (such as lovesickness) will never bear strong enough evidence to clinically warrant "legitimate" affliction by clinical standards without further correspondingly parasympathetic criteria of established dysfunction(s).

[[Frank Tallis]], a researcher of love and lovesickness, suggests in his 2005 article that lovesickness occurs when one is "truly, madly, deeply" in love and should be taken more seriously by medical professionals.<ref name="autogenerated1" />

Tallis includes a list of common symptoms of lovesickness in the following: 
* [[Mania]] - an abnormally elevated mood or inflated [[self-esteem]]
* [[Depression (mood)|Depression]], hopelessness, or helplessness
* [[Nausea]]
* [[Tearfulness]]
* [[Insomnia]], which may lead to [[fatigue (medical)|fatigue]]
* Lack of [[Attentional control|concentration]]
* [[Anorexia (symptom)|Loss of appetite]] or [[overeating]]
* [[Psychological stress|Stress]]
* [[Obsessive-compulsive disorder]] - preoccupation and hoarding valueless but superstitiously resonant items
* [[Dizziness]] and [[confusion]]
* Body tremors, intrusive thoughts, or frequent flashbacks
* [[Mood swings]]

According to Tallis, many symptoms of lovesickness can be categorized under the [[DSM-IV]] and the [[ICD-10]]. [[Obsessive-compulsive disorder]] (OCD) is a symptom of lovesickness because it includes a preoccupation.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> A further study conducted by Italian psychiatrist Donatella Marazitti found that people who were in the early romantic phase of a love relationship had their [[serotonin]] levels drop to levels found in patients with OCD. This level is significantly lower than that of an average or healthy person.<ref>((cite journal |vauthors=Marazziti D, Akiskal HS, Rossi A, Cassano GB |title=Alteration of the platelet serotonin transporter in romantic love |journal=Psychol Med |volume=29 |issue=3 |pages=741–5 |date=May 1999 |pmid=10405096 |doi= 10.1017/S0033291798007946|s2cid=12630172 ))</ref>

==In the arts==
[[William Shakespeare]]'s ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'' portrays the true madness of "love" and the grief that the two young, infatuated lovers feel.<ref>((cite book|last=Shakespeare|first=William|title=Romeo and Juliet|year=1985 |publisher=CBC Enterprises |isbn=9780887941344 |url=https://archive.org/details/romeojuliet0000shak_i0i3|url-access=registration))</ref> When Romeo finds his love dead (or so he believes), with the thought of living without his "true love", the grief and depression overcomes him and he takes his own life. After waking and seeing his dead body, Juliet is overcome with despair and takes her own life.

[[Gothic metal]] songs thematize lovesickness from [[Medieval literature|Medieval literary]] influences. "This emotional and physical distress is a key element of [[courtly love|''fin'amor'']] that echoes into Gothic metal", according to ''The Oxford Handbook of Music and Medievalism''. "In particular, lovesickness was associated with desires and passions that remained unfulfilled, resulting in symptoms such as sleeplessness, sighing, and loss of appetite, all of which were considered manifestations of the mind's efforts to restrain its passions."<ref>((cite book|editor1-last=Yri|editor1-first=Kirsten|editor2-last=Meyer|editor2-first=Stephen C.|year=2020|title=The Oxford Handbook of Music and Medievalism|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=9780190658465|chapter=Medievalistic Melancholia and Lovesickness|page=552))</ref>

The lyrics to American R&B singer [[Bilal (American singer)|Bilal]]'s song "Something to Hold on To" (from the album ''[[Love for Sale (Bilal album)|Love for Sale]]'') are described as a plea to romantic devotion hastily written in a moment of lovesickness.<ref>((cite news|last=Godfrey|first=Sarah|date=January 29, 2007|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2007/01/29/by-grace-of-myspace-no-new-album-but-bilal-packs-black-cat/c1a2a831-4d61-439e-957b-4fe150fb9c40/|title=By Grace of MySpace: No New Album, but Bilal Packs Black Cat|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=July 20, 2020))</ref>

Bob Dylan's song "Love Sick," from his 1997 album ''[[Time Out of Mind (Bob Dylan album)|Time Out of Mind]],'' portrays the conflicting feelings (betrayal and intense love) that come with lovesickness: 
((blockquote|text=
I’m sick of love…I wish I’d never met you<br>I’m sick of love…I’m trying to forget you<br>
Just don't know what to do<br>I'd give anything to be with you
|author=Bob Dylan
|title=''Love Sick'' from ''Time Out of Mind''<ref>((Cite web |title=Love Sick ((!)) The Official Bob Dylan Site |url=https://www.bobdylan.com/songs/love-sick/ |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=www.bobdylan.com))</ref>))

==See also==
* [[Affectional bond]]
* [[Broken heart]]
* [[Hi-wa itck]], a Mojave Indian syndrome triggered by separation of a loved one
* [[Limerence]]
* [[Lovestruck]]
*[[Obsessive love]]
*[[Triangular theory of love]]

==References==
((reflist|colwidth=40em))

==Further reading==
* ((cite book |first=Frank |last=Tallis |title=Love Sick: Love as a Mental Illness |year=2005 ))
* ((cite news |first=Tricia |last=Vaughn |title=Love sickness is real, and the high it provides looks a lot like cocaine usage |year=2013 |url=https://cw.ua.edu/14647/culture/love-sickness-is-real-and-the-high-it-provides-looks-a-lot-like-cocaine-usage/ ))
* ((cite book|last1=Bowers|first1=Len|title=The social nature of mental illness|date=2000|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=0415227771))
* ((cite journal |first=Helen |last=King |title=The Secret Wound: Love, Melancholy and Early Modern Romance (review) |journal=Bulletin of the History of Medicine |volume=82 |issue=2 |year=2008 |pages=445–446 |doi=10.1353/bhm.0.0009 |s2cid=71371213 ))

[[Category:Emotion]]
[[Category:Emotional issues]]
[[Category:Love]]
[[Category:Psychodynamics]]

Pages transcluded onto the current version of this page (help):

Lovesickness (edit)
Template:About (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Ambox (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Blockquote (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Blockquote/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite book (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite journal (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite news (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite web (view source) (protected)
Template:Comma separated entries (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Find sources mainspace (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Hlist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:If empty (view source) (protected)
Template:Lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Love sidebar (view source) (semi-protected)
Template:Main other (view source) (protected)
Template:More citations needed (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Multiple issues (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Multiple issues/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Original research (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Template:Plainlist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:Reflist (view source) (protected)
Template:Reflist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:SDcat (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Short description (view source) (protected)
Template:Short description/lowercasecheck (view source) (protected)
Template:Sidebar with collapsible lists (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:About (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Arguments (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/blacklist (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/shared (view source) (protected)
Module:Check for unknown parameters (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1 (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/COinS (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Disambiguation/templates (view source) (protected)
Module:Exponential search (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/config (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/links (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/templates/Find sources mainspace (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Format link (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote list (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:If empty (view source) (protected)
Module:Lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/ISO 639 synonyms (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Language/data/iana languages (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Language/data/iana regions (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Language/data/iana scripts (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Language/data/iana suppressed scripts (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Language/data/iana variants (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Message box (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/ambox.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Namespace detect/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Namespace detect/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar/configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/disambiguation (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Pagetype/setindex (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Pagetype/softredirect (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:SDcat (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Separated entries (view source) (protected)
Module:Sidebar (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Sidebar/configuration (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Sidebar/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:String (view source) (protected)
Module:TableTools (view source) (protected)
Module:Unicode data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Unicode data/scripts (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Unsubst (view source) (protected)
Module:Wikitext Parsing (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Yesno (view source) (protected)

Return to Lovesickness.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovesickness"