From the Ap; The pain of rejection is more than just a figure of speech. The regions of the brain that respond to physical pain overlap with those that react to social rejection, according to a new study that used brain imaging on people involved in romantic breakups. "These results give new meaning to the idea that rejection `hurts,'" wrote psychology professor Ethan Kross of the University of Michigan and his colleagues. Their findings are reported in Tuesday's edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Co-author Edward Smith of Columbia University explained that the research shows that psychological or social events can affect regions of the brain that scientists thought were dedicated to physical pain. In a way, we're saying "it's not a metaphor," Smith said in a telephone interview. The study involved 40 volunteers who went through an unwanted romantic break-up in the previous six months and who said thinking about the break-up caused them to feel intensely rejected. Functional MRI's were used to study their brains in four situations: When viewing a photo of the ex-partner and thinking about the break-up; when viewing a photo of a friend and thinking of a positive experience with that person; when a device placed on their arm produced a gentle, comforting warmth, and when that device became hot enough to cause pain, though not physical damage. The two negative situations — thinking about the loss of a partner and the burn — caused response in the overlapping parts of the brain, the study found. Previous studies had not shown a relationship between physical and emotional pain, but those had used a less dramatic event, such as simply being told someone doesn't like you, Smith said. In this case, the volunteers were people who had actually been rejected and were still feeling it, he said. There is evidence that emotional stress, such as the loss of a loved one, can affect people physically, and Smith said studies like this may help researchers devise ways to aid people who are sensitive to loss or rejection.
While I suppose it's a good thing that someone finally took the initiative to do the research and conduct a study, I can't help but say 'DUH!' a little bit. This is not a revelation (also not an attack on you for posting what is nonetheless an interesting article) to any of us that have tasted the bitter tears of heartbreak or rejection at some point. From the knot in my stomach when my 1st grade crush refused to accept the rose that I offered her, to my last break-up, which was so agonizing that I found myself curled into a fetal ball on the couch for days afterward, the pain is of course very real. The question is when will we humans acknowledge the humanity of our fellow man, and understand that there's a reason why the Golden Rule is the only 'rule' that is found in all religions. It is the foundation of spiritual practice because it is the beginning of true knowledge: we are all one. What you do to another, you do to yourself. Be kind to one another. There's ways to say 'no, thank you' without crushing someone. Perhaps I've put my heart on my sleeve here...
I think depending on the level of pride, rejection can be an awful feeling. Take me for instance, I broke up with my fiance over 3 years ago now and for some reason, I'm still haunted by our break up - not because it was bad, it really wasn't - but because I was rejected by him.
Agreed. This research does nothing except state the completely obvious. The pains caused by being in love, and then ultimately being rejected caused me physical sickness as well as emotional turmoil for months.
It appears some do not recognize the significance of conceptual induction and physical stimulation overlapping in cognitive areas. It is not the point to tell you what hurts, hurts. That would be silly. The significance is that you can experience pain from an imagined insult.
I hate when people become combative as a way of dealing with rejection. We don't all have to be friends!
