Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash
According to Merriam-Webster.com, there are many definitions to what love is.
- Love is a strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties.
- Love is an attraction based on sexual desire and tenderness felt by lovers.
- Love is devotion based on admiration, benevolence (disposition to do good), or common interests. A deep, tender, ineffable feeling of solicitude towards a person.
- Love refers to a feeling of strong attraction and emotions.
The emotions can be positive and negative. Love can mean trust, commitment, overwhelming feelings, joy, admiration, enjoyment and more. Love is powerful, genuine, exciting, passionate, healing, valuable, and intense.
There are 5 Love Languages:
Words of Affirmation
- Words of Affirmation are words of praise and appreciation to express love.
Physical Touch
- Physical Touch is ways of showing love through touch.
Acts of Service
- Acts of Service is love expressed through actions rather than words.
Receiving Gifts
- Receiving Gifts is love being expressed by giving gifts.
Quality Time
- Quality Time is spending time together and given attention to them.
There are quizzes online to help determine which one is your love language. Discovering your love language with your partner is a great for your relationship. If you each know what your love language is, your partner can take the time learning about you and using your love language in your relationship.
If your love language is quality time, your partner will know how important their attention and time is to you. Intimacy together is quality time spent together to express love and appreciation.
Love consists of friendship, trust, respect, passion, and communication. Without love our world would not go round. We all experience love as a part of our lives whether it’s a person or material items. Unfortunately, material items cannot love us in return. We work hard for what we want and love the things we have. It’s important to appreciate the simple things in life.
We should always love and put ourselves first. Loving on ourselves first helps us to learn how to love others in our lives. Taking the time to experience love with yourselves, tells us how we deserve to be loved. We learn how special we are and what we are worth.
When we are in love, we release oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin. Oxytocin is a feel-good brain chemical that helps you bond emotionally with others. Oxytocin reduces stress and increases trust. It is also associated with dopamine and serotonin. Serotonin stabilizes your mood as well as feelings of happiness. Dopamine plays a role in your increasing pleasure, motivation, learning and imprinting memories.
These neurotransmitters are usually referred to as “happy hormones”. When we’re attracted to and/or care about someone, the three work together. Our brain releases dopamine, our serotonin levels increase, and oxytocin is produced. When we’re in love, all these neurotransmitters make us feel happy and loved.
What is Not Love?
- Love is not dishonesty, a weapon, sex, lust, obsession, jealously, or possession.
- Love should never be used to force someone to do something they don’t want to do.
- It should never be used as a weapon against someone.
- Someone being jealous or controlling is never love.
- Always know what love is and is not to you.
What is lust?
The definition of lust is having an intense desire for another person. When someone is in lust, it can be confused as love. Lust stems from physical attraction and sexual chemistry. When couples combine love and lust together, there is a combination of emotional and physical chemistry. They can experience capability and enrich their lives together.
Love is experienced from our loved ones, friends, and even strangers we just met. To experience love daily, creates happiness and many emotions for you to share to show to others. Learn to love yourself first before you learn to love others.
Tiffany Wharton, Tiffany’s Exotic Treasures
Websites used:
https://www.psycom.net/oxytocin
https://www.verywellhealth.com/what-is-serotonin-5189485