The coronavirus pandemic has some couples living together for the first time. While it may be fun to know more about each other, an indefinite time of bonding can also foster an environment of codependency, which can be problematic. If this gets worse, it can lead to love addiction.
Despite the common misconception that this issue isn’t real, love addiction is when a person becomes desperate to find someone to love out of fear that he/she may become alone or be rejected. Contrary to what people think, it is quite common as 3 to 10 percent of the population struggle with pathological love.
So how do you know if you’re a love addict?
Can’t Stop Thinking About The Other Person
It is normal to think of your significant other most of the time if you genuinely love them. However, if you have become so obsessive about the other person, then you might be a love addict.
If you don’t get how this happens, then watch Netflix’s ‘You,’ where Joe had become so obsessive of a woman that he had done awful things just to make sure she remains with him. According to therapist Becky Whetstone, those who struggle with love addiction will give their attention so much on whom they like, which can evolve into dangerous behavior.
Anxious About Your Partner Leaving
If you are suffering from love addiction, you always feel like your partner will leave you anytime. The expert said that those who are in a relationship with someone they are obsessed with tend to be very insecure and needy.
Partner Is What Only Makes You Feel Good
Love addicts’ self-worth, self-esteem, and life’s purpose are highly dependent on their partner. This is because of codependency, the therapist said.
Being codependent is when a person couldn’t fend for themselves. As such, they heavily rely on their partners.
Past Trauma
Love addiction can also stem from unresolved childhood issues, like longing for the affection of a mom. Becky explained that one of the causes is ‘mother hunger,’ which is the extreme want of a loving matriarch that the person didn’t experience when he/she was a child.
In the absence of a nurturing mother, a love addict will try to fill that hole in the heart by finding someone who is loving and caring. This only allows them to be obsessed with the partner who provides them the affection they had been looking for.
Partner Is The Only Reason To Live
Because you are so reliant and dependent on your partner, it can be challenging to break up with your significant other. It doesn’t matter if the relationship is toxic or not because it wouldn’t be a factor for love addicts.
The need for unconditional love is so much that when their partners leave love addicts, they see no point in living anymore.
