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Romantic rejection isn't literally the same as receiving a physical injury, but the experiences aren't completely separate neurologically.
Brain-imaging research has found overlap between systems involved in intense social rejection and aspects of physical pain processing.
This may help explain why people describe rejection with physical language such as “hurt” or “heartache.”
Humans evolved as deeply social animals, so social loss can carry powerful emotional consequences.
When rejection genuinely hurts, “hurt” isn't merely a poetic choice of word.
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