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If you’ve ever spent countless hours thinking of a romantic interest, poring over your interactions for hints that they might reciprocate, and unable to imagine your life without them, you could be dealing with more than just a harmless crush. When these relentless romantic thoughts begin to affect everyday life, they’re considered what psychologists call a ‘limerent episode’. Unlike normal romantic feelings, limerence is a debilitating psychological disorder characterised by intrusive thinking, an intense desire for reciprocation and an over-idealisation of the ‘limerent object’. This animation from BBC Reel offers a description and very brief history of limerence, as well as some tips for helping to overcome the condition.
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Wellbeing
A tender poem doubles as a guide to sitting comfortably in one’s own company
3 minutes
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Values and beliefs
How a God-fearing Jewish woman found atheism – and bacon – in her later years
9 minutes
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War and peace
Before he leaves to go to war, Artem, 18, says goodbye to the man who raised him
12 minutes
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Art
A mindbending trip that summons the forgotten women of surrealism
17 minutes
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Family life
A son of China’s former one-child policy remembers the sibling he never had
8 minutes
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Social psychology
A harrowing account of a 1970 ‘leadership seminar’ spotlights self-help’s dark side
11 minutes
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Beauty and aesthetics
For Ruskin, words couldn’t capture nature’s palette. So here it is in black and white
6 minutes
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Wellbeing
Wry animations expose the gap between anxious aspiration and real life
5 minutes
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Mood and emotion
Alone on a small island in Belgrade, a father grieves his daughter in quiet solitude
12 minutes