Researchers have tested the pain reactions of several heterosexual couples. They find that in the presence of their partner, individuals suffer less.
Love makes you blind… and less sensitive to pain? A research conducted by the University of Science, Medical Informatics and Technology in Austria and the University of the Balearic Islands in Spain focused on the pain experienced by people in couples, whether or not their partner is present. Even without physical or verbal contact, having your better half close to you would lessen the pain.
A calming presence
48 heterosexual couples participated in the study. Each of the partners passed a pain test, once alone and once accompanied. There was no physical or verbal communication between the two people, the researchers only allowed them to look at each other. The pain felt by the participants was greater when they were alone.
“We knew that talking or touching someone decreases the pain felt, specifies one of the authors of the study, Stefan Duschek, but our research shows that even the passive presence of a romantic partner can reduce it”. When the researchers gave them constant pressure stimuli, the sensory pain indices were also lower. According to their findings, the empathy of the partner is able to attenuate the distress felt during exposure to pain.
Love produces the same effects as alcohol
The effects of a relationship on our sensations may surprise you. In March 2019, researchers devoted a study to the effects of love on our organism. When we spend time with our partner, have sex or have an orgasm, we produce a hormone called oxytocin. According to these scientists, it would have the same effect on the body as alcohol, in particular an ability to reduce fear and stress.
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