Limerence — what it means

An intense, intrusive, involuntary romantic obsession with another person — usually marked by fantasy, mood swings keyed to their attention, and dependence on reciprocation. Coined by Dorothy Tennov, 1979.

What it looks like

You can't think about anything but them. Their reply lifts the whole day; their silence wrecks it. It feels like love — the body says it's love — but it's running on intermittent reinforcement, which is closer to limerence than to attachment.

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