It's actually quite normal for your heart to beat faster (or race) – and can happen when you are excited, nervous, angry or even if you've had too many coffees. You've probably heard of the fight or flight response. Well, that also explains the feeling of your heart racing during a romantic moment.
Now, it's normal for your heart to race when you are excited or nervous, or to add or skip a beat once in a while. In most cases, it's caused by something that's easy to fix, like not enough sleep or too much caffeine – or perhaps it's a sign that you're falling in love.
When you catch sight of your beloved and your heart starts racing, that's because of an adrenaline rush, said Dr. Reginald Ho, a cardiac electrophysiologist and associate professor of medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Your Heart Starts Racing
When you have a deep attraction to someone, your heart can't handle its standard beat pattern. CNN notes that you feel a rush of adrenaline when you see your soulmate, which causes your heart to race after your brain transmits signals to release those chemicals into your blood stream.
Your Heart Gets a Workout When it Goes Pitter-Patter
When you lock eyes with the person who makes your heart race — whether it's a new crush or the love of your life — your brain releases hormones such as dopamine, adrenaline, and norepinephrine, which make your heart beat faster and stronger.
Being in love looks different for everyone, but you can count on experiencing bliss, stability, and a lasting connection. The early, euphoric feelings result from increases in dopamine and norepinephrine . You'll develop a deeper connection once oxytocin levels increase as it leads to attachment.
You start feeling all flustered whenever they're around. Your heart beats faster and your palms start to sweat. This happens when an adrenaline-like neurotransmitter called norepinephrine is released.
You know that feeling you get when you're newly in love? Your palms sweat, your knees get weak, and your heart feels like it might leap out of your chest. This happens because your brain sends a signal to your adrenal glands, which release hormones that trigger physical responses to love.
Strong emotions
(And, yes, it's true that the feelings of nervousness and anticipation that can come with falling in love can, in fact, trigger your heart to skip a beat.) Other strong emotions can cause heart palpitations as well, including: Anger. Anxiety.
Love and other emotions are actually regulated in the brain, not the heart. Specifically, a part of the brain called the amygdala. People might partly associate the heart with strong emotions like love because when we get excited to see someone, our heart sometimes beats faster, and we notice our heartbeat.
You know you're falling in love when your someone begins to take up major real estate in your thoughts. You might find yourself rehashing your conversations in the middle of work, thinking about your next date days in advance, or even envisioning your future together.
Dopamine creates feelings of euphoria while adrenaline and norepinephrine are responsible for the pitter-patter of the heart, restlessness and overall preoccupation that go along with experiencing love. MRI scans indicate that love lights up the pleasure center of the brain.
Palpitations can feel scary, so it's normal to worry or feel anxious when you have them. But palpitations are usually harmless and often feel more serious than they are.
That, my dear, is called an adrenaline response. It's a natural little “stress” reaction. It also happens when people get startled, surprised, and when you suddenly see or get a call from your ex or someone you're crushing on. It's part of the “fight or flight” response we all instinctively have.
High levels of dopamine and a related hormone, norepinephrine, are released during attraction. These chemicals make us giddy, energetic, and euphoric, even leading to decreased appetite and insomnia – which means you actually can be so “in love” that you can't eat and can't sleep.
Common causes include: Strong emotional responses, such as stress, anxiety or panic attacks. Depression. Strenuous exercise.
Increased levels of oxytocin lead to feelings of stability and trust; we end up wanting more of those warm fuzzy feelings, more oxytocin is released, and a chemical cycle goes on. Love also induces adrenaline in the brain.
Anxiety or stress is the root of most chest butterflies—also referred to as heart palpitations—and they can stimulate a surge of adrenaline in the body.
'As you unconsciously perceive these micro-expressions in someone else, you feel good because you notice that he or she understands you on an emotional level. This causes your heart rate to increase. This is probably what happens if you find someone romantically attractive.
You can assume a man is deeply in love with a woman once his initial attraction turns into attachment. Physical attraction, sexual compatibility, empathy, and emotional connection are key to making a man fall in love with a woman.
Have you ever looked at someone you were strongly attracted to, only to find yourself with a light, tingly feeling in your abdominal area? This can be a common symptom of love. It often occurs because being in love with someone may also come with nervousness and stress.
While it can take less than a second for someone to develop attraction towards someone else, the neuroscience behind the chemical changes happening in the brain is complex. When we experience attraction or develop a crush, chemicals are released in the brain creating a stress and reward response.