Love is a funny thing. I find it almost impossible to explain why or how I know I'm in love with someone. Usually, I just... know. I also know, though, that if your partner asks why you love them and you say because you just do, they're probably going to give you the cold shoulder for the rest of the day. Oops! Since I'm absolutely terrible at this, I wanted to know exactly how it feels when guys fall in love. "Maybe I could learn a thing or two about expressing my feelings," I thought. Or maybe this would simply be great intel for my next relationship. *Insert evil laugh here.*
Consider this. If women are supposedly more emotional, why is it always the guy running through the airport to deliver a passionate, tear-jerking speech to the woman he loves at the end of the movie? This isn't just something that happens in the movies, either. Men typically say "I love you" first more often than women do. And anecdotally, my male partners have always been the first ones to say, "I love you," in every relationship I've been in. What I'm saying is, we've got to start giving guys more credit IRL for being able to feel and express complex, overwhelming emotions — like love.
Here's what falling in love feels like, according to 12 guys who've been in love. Sometimes, it's poetic. Other times, it's gut-wrenching.
Its the best feeling in the world. But its also the most painful sometimes. Your heart pounds and your head spins just by glancing at her. Every fiber on your body just relaxes at her touch and hurts so much without it. You sometimes breakdown and cry because you cant handle the over flow of love in your heart. Its incredible. But having to be away from the person for whatever period of time hurts like hell. You become more sensitive and soft. Things hurt easier. But thats okay, you have her.
I only really realised I loved her when it hurt when she said goodbye.
For me falling was the keyword - it was something I couldn't stop if I wanted to (and I did want too). I knew infatuation/lust, and love went beyond that.
I like that quote. I don’t know where from, but it says, 'Falling in love is like falling asleep, slowly at first and then all at once.'
- Kyle*, 27
It feels like you’ve finally found the person who you would put their happiness above your own.
There is no other experience like it... Imagine, if you will, a perfect day. The weather is perfect, the food you eat and the things you do are perfect and you are happy and content as can be. That feeling, every day, times 10... and it's even better knowing your other half feels that way about you, too.
It's like when things stop feeling monochromatic even if it's just for a flicker in time. It's like a longing to see only that person after an arduous day, just for solace, just because being in their presence is comforting. It's when things stop being an option and become a priority.
- Francis, 23
A bad joke with no punchline.
- oldeddy
One of my favorite movies about love is The Wedding Planner because Jennifer Lopez's character Mary says very honestly, "I don't feel anything about love." It's ironic because, like the title of the movie suggests, her job as a wedding planner is all about love but I get where she's coming from. It isn't until her soon-to-be ex-fiancé explains to her that, "Love can't always be perfect. Love is just love," that she realizes her whole approach has been wrong. There's no right way to fall in love and that's what these guys have proved.
*Names have been changed.
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