You might not be able to sleep properly after a breakup
Sleep might not come easy after you’ve broken up with the person you thought would be your “forever”. It might be difficult to quiet down your mind, stop thinking of all the “what ifs” and “maybes” and just get some shut-eye.
According to psychotherapist Ronald A. Alexander, sleep disorders such as insomnia are common side effects of breakups and, unfortunately, they don’t go away that easily. Post-breakup insomnia can last for a few weeks and “the best thing you can do is try to feed your dopamine [the ‘feel-good chemical’] receptors in other ways”. Go out more, start new hobbies, meet new people and get involved in activities that take your mind off the split, suggests sex and relationship therapist Shan Boodram.
You might experience strange cravings after a breakup
If you’ve ever been through a bad breakup, you know there are times when all you want is to wrap yourself in a blanket and cozy up to a tube of Ben&Jerry. But there’s a reason why ice-cream is people’s go-to breakup food. “The areas of the brain in charge of emotions and emotional pain also [regulate] how we eat, our need for food, and what we taste,” explains neurobiology professor Gert ter Horst.
You might not feel like eating after a split, but when you do decide to grab something, you will automatically go for fatty, sugary foods. These types of foods release feel-good chemicals, such as oxytocin, whose production is affected by the stress caused by the breakup. The more you eat, the better you will feel, at least for a while.
