At First Sight: Love or Infatuation?

If you see the person for the first time and you feel butterflies in your stomach, are you in love or just infatuated?

Since time immemorial, “love at first sight” has been a controversial topic.

People argue that it is possible to fall in love with someone you’ve just only seen or met, while some say it is not love, but infatuation.

How do you discern which from which?

Unfortunately, there are no real means to determine if you are in love with the person or just infatuated. However, there is a thin line that differentiates them.

Love is a genuine feeling of affection for someone. Yes, you might feel butterflies in your stomach when you fall in love, but it is more than that.

Love is about the emotional connection you have with the person. You want that person to be happy even at the expense of yours.

So how does that come into the equation of love at first sight?

It is simple. You don’t really fall in love with the person you see for the first time per se. You might be attracted. But if you pursue that feeling of attraction, it can develop into something in the level of love.

Love takes time to develop. In fact, you can fall in love without you realizing it. For instance, being a good friend is considered love, yet you never really planned on falling for that person. It just happens over time.

It depends on how you nurture that feeling that allows friendship to blossom into something more splendid. You tend to care more for the person, and will go out of your way for them.

Whether you’ve only just seen the person or have been friends for a long time, love — in the form of caring, can develop. However, too much of that feeling can also lead to infatuation.

Infatuation is a by-product of too much affection. It is an obsessive feeling of admiration or interest in someone. Infatuation is a want; love is a need.

There are several signs that may indicate you are experiencing infatuation rather than love:

1. Intense attraction: You feel a strong, almost overwhelming attraction to the other person. This attraction may be based on physical appearance, but it can also be based on factors such as status or wealth.
2. Impatient: You tend to become impatient and want a relationship to happen quickly. You may push for a commitment before you even get to know the person.
3. Fantasy: Infatuation can cause you to create a fantasy in your mind of what the relationship will be like and how the other person will make you feel. You will see them as perfect, ignoring any flaws or negative traits.
4. Obsession: You can become obsessed with the other person, thinking about them constantly and wanting to be around them all the time. You become more jealous and possessive.
5. Lack of Trust: You are too afraid to show your true self to the other person, fearing they might not like you back. You might also have difficulties trusting the other person’s intentions.
6. Unrealistic Expectations: You have unrealistic expectations of the other person, and may be disappointed when those expectations are not met.

It’s important to note that infatuation can sometimes be confused with true love, especially in the early stages of a relationship. However, infatuation fades over time, while true love only grows stronger.

If you feel any of the above after seeing someone for the first time, you’re not in love, but rather infatuated.

So now, do you believe in love at first sight?

After all that’s said and done, only time can tell if you are truly in love.