Getting Dumped Hurts Like Hell

A new study highlights the similarities between physical pain and social rejection. When recently dumped individuals were asked to view a picture of their ex, an fMRI scan revealed that their brain was active in the same areas that process physical pain.

Kross, E., Berman, M. G., Mischel, W., & Smith, E. E. (2011). Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.