Brain Treats Rejection Like Physical Pain

The human brain treats rejection in
a similar way to the way it process
physical pain, new research has
suggested.
A scientific study conducted by the
University of Michigan Medical
School has shown that the brain
uses a similar reaction to ease the
pain of social rejection as it does to
deal with pain caused by physical
injury.
A team led by Dr David T. Hsu also
found that people who showed high
levels of resilience on a personality
test also had higher levels of natural
painkiller activation.
When the body experiences physical
pain, the brain releases chemical
opioids into the empty space
between neurons, which “dampens”
pain signals.
The team asked 18 adults to look at
photos and fictitious personal
profiles of hundreds of other adults.
Each selected some who they might
be most
interested in romantically, as they
would do on a typical online dating
website.
Afterwards, when the participants
were lying in a PET scanner, they
were informed that the individuals
they found attractive and interesting
were not interested in them.
Researchers monitored the mu-
opioid receptor system in the brain,
which the team have been
examining for the last decade in
response to physical pain.
The brain scans of participants who
were experiencing this form of social
rejection showed the opioid systems
were highly active, meaning the
brain was releasing its natural
painkiller.
Before beginning the study,
researchers told participants that
the “dating” profiles were not real,
and neither was the “rejection. ”
However, the simulated social
rejection was enough to cause both
an emotional and opioid response.
“This is the first study to peer into
the human brain to show that the
opioid system is activated during
social rejection,” Dr Hsu said.
“This suggests that opioid release in
this structure during social rejection
may be protective or adaptive.
“In general, opioids have been
known to be released during social
distress and isolation in animals, but
where this occurs in the human
brain has not been shown until
now.”
Dr Hsu noted that the underlying
personality of the participants
appeared to play a role in how active
their opioid system response was.
“Individuals who scored high for the
resiliency trait on a personality
questionnaire tended to be capable
of more opioid release during social
rejection, especially in the
amygdala,” he said.
“This suggests that opioid release in
this structure during social rejection
may be protective or adaptive."
He added: “It is possible that those
with depression or social anxiety are
less capable of releasing opioids
during times of social distress, and
therefore do not recover as quickly
or fully from a negative social
experience."
The team concluded that the brain
pathways activated by physical and
social pain are similar. Studying this
response, and the variation between
people, could aid understanding of
depression and anxiety.
New opioids could therefore
potentially be developed as effective
treatments for depression and
anxiety.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/
science/brain-treats-rejection-like-physical-
pain-say-scientists-8884507.html
www.uselucentral.blogspot.no/2013/10/
brain-treats-rejection-like-physical.html?
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