Breakups are hard — but could the secret to getting over them be more within our control than we think? Apparently, all it could take to feel better is believing you’re doing something to feel better.
At least that’s the contention of a recent study published in the Journal of Neuroscience.
The small study followed 40 people a few years years ago who, within the preceding six months, went through an “unwanted romantic breakup.”
The study went as follows: A functional magnetic resonance imaging machine, called an fMRI, followed the participants’ brain activity as they looked at pictures of their exes and then their same-gendered good friend. When they looked at their exes, they were told to recount the breakup scenario. Additionally the subjects also received physical pain via a heated device on their arm. The physical and emotional pain resulted in similar brain responses.
Next, everyone received a nasal spray. The researchers told half of the participants the spray was a “powerful analgesic effective in reducing emotional pain,” while they other half thought it was just a saline solution. And something interesting happened. Once back in the fMRI machine, undergoing the same drill as before, participants who received this placebo spray didn’t have the same brain reactions about their exes as before. They also experienced less physical and emotional pain, the researchers found.
On a subjective level, news outlet Quartz reports, people said they felt better via a self-reported survey. However, that wasn’t the only metric: Their brain activity changed. Part of their midbrain — called the periaqueductal gray — saw increased activity. This area helps govern our perceptions of pain.
“The current view is that you have positive expectations and they influence activity in your prefrontal cortex, which in turn influences systems in your midbrain to generate neurochemical opioid or dopamine responses,” Tor Wager, a study author from the University of Colorado-Boulder, said in a statement.
Placebos have a long record as pain relievers for diseases like Parkinson’s, though this study is touted as the first to look at how placebos can affect emotional pain post- breakup.
“What is becoming more and more clear is that expectations and predictions have a very strong influence on basic experiences, on how we feel and what we perceive,” study author Leonie Koban said in a statement.
Quartz reports Koban wants her work to show people that heartbreak is indeed a real thing and that your mind influences how well you deal with it. Other research shows journal writing is “possibly the most efficient method for treating love’s wounds,” Quartz reports.
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This Is the Secret to Getting Over a Breakup, Study Says originally appeared on usnews.com
