We watch couples fall in love the second they meet in a million rom-coms, and depending on how optimistic or cynical we are, we either swoon or cringe. Even if you’re the least romantic person on the planet, you’ve either experienced that moment when you meet someone and just know you’re into them – or it’s definitely going to happen to you in the future. The concept of love at first sight isn’t just a figment of our collective imaginations. Here are nine reasons why it totally exists, so you shouldn’t give up hope.
- The majority of physical chemistry is immediate. There’s a popular school of thought that you can be into someone’s personality first and then, as time marches on and you get to know them, your attraction will grow. But we all know that being physically attracted to someone from the get-go makes things much easier. And while lust at first sight doesn’t always translate to everlasting love, it’s a necessary first step.
- It happens all the time. People often say, “I just knew” when you ask how they fell for their current partner or, “From the moment I laid eyes on them, it was clear this was the person I was going to marry.” If that’s not love at first sight, then I don’t know what is.
- You’ve experienced a version of it. At least once in your life, you’ve met a guy, thought he was super hot, loved talking to him, texted him 24/7, thought about him all the time, wanted to be with him all the time, and so on. Maybe your romance crashed and burned before it even really got off the ground, but it wasn’t just hormones that made you so into him (although those definitely were ruling you). You fell for him, in a way. And if you’re with your forever soulmate right now, well, you’re still experiencing it.
- Believing in love makes it more likely. If you’re a super cynical person who hates anything to do with romance, of course you’re going to laugh when someone brings up the idea of knowing that you’re in love before you even get to know another person. If you’re a hopeless romantic, however, you’re already on board, so you’re more likely to claim love at first sight on a first date or during a meet-cute at a party.
- Visualization is a powerful thing. Many successful people make vision boards that are essentially collages of what they want to do and who they want to be. They picture themselves in a certain place and then once they end up there, they’ve already done the mental work and already believe they totally belong. You can do the same thing if you believe that your true love is out there waiting for you, and then you’ll already be prepped to fall in love at first glance when you finally do.
- We’ve been conditioned by the movies. Most of us grow up with the majority of our beliefs about love and relationships coming from movies and teen dramas – and you know that love at first sight is a common feature of almost every single Hollywood moment. So if you’re convinced your Happily Ever After is just around the corner with the next guy you lay eyes on, who can blame you?
- Your broken hearts always heal. You’ve gotten over even the worst breakups and you’re always able to believe in love again. Knowing that when love fades, you can always bounce back and find someone new shows you that you can be open to anything, even the possibility that you can fall for someone instantly.
- It’s more fun to think positively. Who would you rather be, the girl who groans every time she receives a wedding invite, or someone who loves love? You want to enjoy your life – who doesn’t? – and it’s more fun to be positive and figure that anything can happen.
- The impossible happens 24/7. We land our dream jobs that always seemed so far out of our reach. We move across the country and find we’re happy even without our crew. Thousands of daily miracles happen to people every day, including lots of couples falling for each other at first glance. And isn’t that cool to think about?
