"We see changes in our heart rate and blood pressure, we release more stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, our blood gets a bit stickier, our immune system can be a bit vulnerable and our sleep can be disturbed."
Mostly due to the same two stress hormones that mess with your immune system — adrenaline and cortisol — other physical symptoms of heartache can arise post-breakup. "Adrenaline is the hormone that keeps us on edge, keeps us anxious, keeps us unable to sleep," Dr. Kaga said. "Cortisol affects our sleep-wake cycle.
Research has shown that when someone goes through a breakup, they experience a drop in the production of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin that are associated with feelings of pleasure and happiness.
Some people describe it as a dull ache, others as piercing, while still others experience it as a crushing sensation. The pain can last for a few seconds and then subside, or it can be chronic, hanging over your days and depleting you like just like the pain, say, of a back injury or a migraine.
While breakups hit women the hardest, they tend to recover more fully. Men, on the other hand, never fully recover. Women experience more emotional pain following a breakup, but they also more fully recover, according to new research from Binghamton University.
Both studies revealed that people felt rejection more acutely when someone else was picked over them than when it was for no one else. This suggests that being left for someone else romantically can be pretty much be an even bigger heartbreak.
Stage 1: Shock
The shock of a breakup is all about pain, disorganization, and confusion, Gullick tells mbg. You may try to rationalize it and feel an immense need to understand what went wrong. "Often, it's bewildering," she says.
Therefore, a broken heart feels so difficult and painful to deal with. The person often withdraws in their shell and is pushed into depression. A person with a broken heart often has episodes of sobbing, rage, and despair. They may not eat or sleep for days and may also neglect their personal hygiene.
Men might suppress their feelings more
From a young age, boys are told not to cry or show any emotions. They grow up learning that to cry is to be weak, and to feel hurt or to express it means they are somehow not “man” enough. Due to this, men tend to suppress their emotions a lot more than women do.
Women experience more emotional pain following a breakup than men, researchers have found. They reported higher levels of both physical and emotional pain.
Along with low mood and anxiety, heartache might cause you significant stress, and may make you feel shocked, constantly drained, hyper alert, and you may even experience physical pain. These can occur as the result of the hormonal and emotional upheaval caused by a breakup.
During a break-up, an increase in cortisol levels can result in higher blood pressure and heart rate. While cortisol is a helpful chemical when it comes to combating stress, too much of it is simply not good for the functioning of the body. High levels of cortisol in the brain sends signals to the major muscle groups.
Many people feel disappointment, grief, and a sense of failure when a relationship ends. Break-ups often mean a big change in your daily routine; this abrupt change can feel overwhelming. In addition to your routine, who you spent time with may change as well.
"Most people probably wait at least a month if they had a relationship that was at least a few months long," Sherman told INSIDER. "If it was a more significant relationship then they may take longer, like three months or more to start dating again." Still, you don't need to get hung up on a particular deadline.
They look to their friends whom they still trust, to help them get through the first few days. After a breakup, guys seek more social activity which serves to distract them from the breakup and help them navigate their new reality.
The truth is that it typically takes men longer to get over a breakup than women, Carol says: "It can take some men years—or even decades...if they truly loved her. They just don't show their grief to others—or even to themselves."
But men tend to go through some common stages when going through a heartbreak. Initially, they might withdraw from social activities and tend to isolate themselves. They can also become angry and lash out for no apparent reason. As they start to accept it, they might try to win their ex back by any means necessary.
When we break up, our brains lose their regular supply of these neurotransmitters, and we go into neurological withdrawal. This is how broken hearts break brains. Subjectively, the deficit in these chemicals can make us feel anxious, depressed, and isolated.
When it comes to breakups, we tend to think that women are devastated while men quickly move on. But a new study from researchers at Binghamton University and University College London reveals that breakups actually hit men harder than women.
Some data (such as from self-reported surveys) do suggest that men recover from breakups faster than women, according to Paul Hokemeyer, PhD, a marriage and family therapist and author of the book Fragile Power: Why Having Everything Is Never Enough.