{"id":3926,"date":"2012-02-28T17:58:27","date_gmt":"2012-02-28T21:58:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ombs\/?p=3926"},"modified":"2012-02-28T17:58:27","modified_gmt":"2012-02-28T21:58:27","slug":"failing-relationship-take-some-neurochemicals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/2012\/02\/28\/failing-relationship-take-some-neurochemicals\/","title":{"rendered":"Failing Relationship? Take Some Neurochemicals!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"st_twitter_large\"><\/span><span class=\"st_facebook_large\"><\/span><span class=\"st_ybuzz_large\"><\/span><span class=\"st_gbuzz_large\"><\/span><span class=\"st_email_large\"><\/span><span class=\"st_sharethis_large\"><\/span><br \/>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"http:\/\/w.sharethis.com\/button\/buttons.js\"><\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\">stLight.options({publisher:'0b9142ea-42f7-4b62-947d-dd7654ef4f2d'});<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The one day of the year dreaded by the many people in, out of, and between relationships has come and passed. Being a huge neuroscience nerd, I spent much of February 14th searching for articles and scholarly papers about the neuroscience of love, sex, attraction, friend zones, what have you. But nothing really blew me away. In my third year of studying neuroscience, I have a relatively extensive knowledge of the brain. I certainly have heard all about neurochemicals being released during sex, when you\u2019re constantly thinking (to the point of obsessing) about that special someone, and even when you just look at a photograph of them. And sure, it\u2019s cool the first five times you read about how fascinating oxytocin and serotonin are. But I\u2019m <em>over<\/em> hearing it. <!--more--><\/p>\n<p>And then I thought about long-term relationships that reach the point of boredom. We all understand the \u2018honeymoon phase\u2019 of a relationship\u2014we all have felt those butterflies in our stomachs and remember constantly thinking of our crush *ahem* Ryan Gosling *ahem*. But only those in the very committed long-term relationships understand what happens after this phase (which generally lasts for two years, believe it or not). You get comfortable together; certain boundaries that are present in the \u2018honeymoon phase\u2019 are crossed and you\u2019re both fine with it. You accept that those butterflies got tired of flapping their wings and they\u2019re ready to settle down at the bottom of your stomach while you settle down with your sweetheart. So how can we rekindle these relationships that have slowed down?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><img class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/28.media.tumblr.com\/tumblr_lyuaa25SpR1rnorsno1_400.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Here comes the good stuff guys- no more mushy gushy relationship business; we are now approaching neuroscience territory\u2014neuroenhancement of love. Huh? Yeah, that\u2019s right, researchers have been trying to figure out ways to salvage a failing relationship or marriage by playing with your brain chemicals.<\/p>\n<p>Some of these are expected. For example, increasing pheromones or testosterone in both men and women also increases sexual desire, activity, and satisfaction. An increase in oxytocin may \u2018reinforce pair bonds by giving the right drugs to subjects while they are in close contact with their partner.\u2019  Yet there are some that will most likely produce controversy. Entactogen drugs encourage sociability, emotional connections and openness, and a decrease in anxiety. What are entactogens, you ask? An example: ecstasy (MDMA). Considering the stigma that ecstasy has attained, it seems unlikely to me that this will ever be an option for the forborne lovers. Another interesting prospect is corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). Studies have found that \u2018upregulating the CRH receptor may promote partner attachment.\u2019 But this one seemingly works by increasing fears of separation and being alone, so it has some pretty negative psychological side effects, such as depression and anxiety.<\/p>\n<p>I think it\u2019s important to assess the neuroethics of this whole shebang. Sure, committed companionship is important. But should we be playing around with our brain chemicals because we aren\u2019t giving off or receiving the kind of emotional response we\u2019re looking for in a relationship?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.bep.ox.ac.uk\/__data\/assets\/pdf_file\/0009\/9396\/Sandberg,_Neuroenhancement_of_Love_and_Marriage.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">The Neuroenhancement of Love and Marriage<\/a> &#8211; University of Oxford<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/neuroscientistryangosling.tumblr.com\/\">Neuroscientist Ryan Gosling Blog<\/a> &#8211; Thank you, Tumblr<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The one day of the year dreaded by the many people in, out of, and between relationships has come and passed. Being a huge neuroscience nerd, I spent much of February 14th searching for articles and scholarly papers about the neuroscience of love, sex, attraction, friend zones, what have you. But nothing really blew me [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7106,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[587,591],"tags":[630,718,889,950,978,996,1038,1120],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3926"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6054,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3926\/revisions\/6054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}