You may be wondering what love addiction actually is. Love addiction is the repeat of compulsive patterns of behavior in terms of relationships, romance, and sexuality that can have destructive consequences that are as damaging as many other addictions. They can cause or include marital problems, child custody problems, health issues, or problems with your job or career to name a few. Essentially a love addict finds it hard to function in society and on a personal level when they are not in a relationship. They tend to lose themselves in relationships that can also be fraught with different types of problems. It is common for a love addict to jump from relationship to relationship without first ending a previous connection. Although a love addiction can come in various forms, so do the forms of recovery from love addiction.
It Is Imperative to Seek Love Addiction Treatment
In and of itself love addiction is an obsessive and compulsive behavior. The treatment for this type of addiction can be like other types of treatments for compulsive behaviors too. Love addiction itself takes root early in life with insecure attachments to parents and contributing factors like abandonment, childhood neglect, abuse of a sexual, physical, or emotional manner, and rejection. In some cases there may even be a chemical imbalance in levels of oxytocin and PEA (phenylethylamine); the neurotransmitters that create the feelings of euphoria that happens when falling in love. A love addict can even become addicted and dependent on the psychological and physical arousal that is triggered by oxytocin and PEA, hence their need to constantly seek new relationships so they can experience this feeling again. Typically love addicts are also insecure in relationships and have trouble establishing bonds and boundaries that are appropriate. In fact they may even sabotage a relationship for fear of being rejected or others getting too close. They often stay in unhealthy relationships because they fear being alone. The overall goal is for a love addict to seek treatment so their negative behaviors can be identified while learning healthy tools that allow them to build better relationships so they gain authentic love and genuine intimacy.
You Can Recover from Love Addiction
Although love addiction is a no-substance addiction you can seek treatment from an established rehab facility with many love addiction programs. This type of addiction is real and often treatable. It all starts with counseling to uncover the roots of your addiction that may go clear back to childhood. Such counseling and treatments are meant to restore your life that has been disrupted by trauma and addiction.