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A reason. A season. A lifetime… It is said that we fall in love three times in our life. And each of those times is very different. The 'Three Love Theory' states that the average person usually experiences three types of romantic love: lust, passion, and commitment. It’s also said that we have to kiss a few frogs before we finally find our prince or princess. If you’re lucky enough to have experienced true love, you’ll probably know how life-changing it can be.
If you love all things love, you might want to check out an online community called r/lovememes. As the name suggests, it’s filled with memes about love and is “a celebration of love, in all its incarnations.” Over 109,000 people have joined the page for their daily dose of mushy, romantic, funny, and relatable relationship content. Bored Panda has put together our personal favorites for you to scroll through while you reminisce about *that* person. Some of these posts might melt even the iciest of hearts.
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#1
Very Sweet
RELATED:
#2
The World Needs More Love Like This
#3
True Love Is Real Love
If you fit the mold of what relationship experts believe is the average person’s life journey, then you’ll probably experience three types of love in your lifetime. The first two are meant to prepare you for the real, big, lasting love. But you might believe you’ve found “the one” each time around.
According to the “Three Love Theory,” your first love comes disguised as a fairytale love. The one that you believe will last a lifetime. But experts say it is, in fact, an “idealistic” love. “This love is usually more surface level, with more importance placed on how the relationship might look to others,” writes Roxy Nafousi on the Poosh site. “While it certainly feels like true love at the time, it’s not usually the deep, raw love that you’ll experience later on.”
#6
Always. Find Yourself A Gold
You might have heard of Mark Manson. He’s the author that loves using the “F-word” in the titles of his best-selling books. He explains that the “Three Love Theory” was the work of anthropologist Mary Fisher. Fisher studied the cognitive and neurobiological processes that happen when we are attracted to someone or fall in love.
Manson says our first love is based on lust. “It’s instantaneous and based on pretty straightforward physical and behavioral components of attraction,” he writes on his blog. “Lust can also leave just as quickly as it came. It’s transitory and shifts constantly within a person. It has no attachment or favoritism.”
#7
Not Dumb, It Is Just Love
#8
Love Is A Choice, Not A Fleeting Feeling
#9
From Strangers To Spouses
Of course, when this love ends, it can feel like your whole world is crashing down and ending with it. In time, you will recover. But as they say, we never forget our first love. We are meant to learn something from each of our relationships. And the lesson from this one, according to the experts, is that falling in love feels amazing, but nothing lasts forever. And that often, Hollywood rom-coms lie.
#10
Boys Need Love Too
#12
Two Types Of People
The second love is the one that sweeps you off your feet and into a whirlwind of intensity. We might think we’ve found our soulmate. We see ourselves reflected right back from them. This is the crazy love. The mad love. The passionate love. At times, the bad love…
“As we fall into this intense love story, the relationship becomes a mirror into our soul: we see all our insecurities, our needs, and our desires staring back at us. In this relationship, we may experience jealousy, fear, and self-doubt that we’ve never felt before. The relationship comes with massive highs and dramatic lows,” says Nafousi.
#13
Wholesome Girlfriend
#14
Understanding & Respect
#15
Treat Your Man Like A Royalty Too
Tonyah Mcanelly 2 weeks ago
My husband does so much for me. I have a 45 minute commute to and from work each day . He runs our insurance agency from his office about 3 minutes away . He makes sure every night when I walk through the door I have a hot dinner waiting. I don't even care if its hamburger helper he does the laundry and the grocery shopping . I feel like my husband is beyond King status I don't know how I got so lucky .
Manson explains that passion has the power to override a person's logical functioning. It can trick us into making sweeping statements, promises, and commitments that we later realize we didn't mean.
"Think newlyweds and honeymoons. Think romantic getaways. Think Romeo and Juliet," he writes. "Passion is created by having a high degree of emotional chemistry as well as cultivating a sense of 'newness' or spontaneity within the relationship. Hence, old married couples who plan romantic getaways to rekindle the passion in their relationship."
#16
Anything For My Love
#17
Yeah Its True
Tabitha 2 weeks ago
Still a caveat to this. Remember that abusers are the world’s greatest actors, and can still fool you, no matter how you try to protect yourself from being roped into someone’s lies. Been there, got fooled—-and I have always been a huge Doubting Thomas about everything and everyone, and tested the guy. He still had me fooled. He was obviously in for the long con with me. Just be careful, nd always make sure you have a devoted group of people as your support network.
#18
Well Said
Child of the Stars 2 weeks ago
This was one of the reasons my marriage failed. My (now-ex) husband would never touch me unless he wanted s*x. And he wanted it immediately, so it would be only when we were already in bed. But I have some health conditions that give me a low libido; I need time to get physically excited.
Manson says these relationships can fizzle out as fast as they started. "Passion's death is wrought by a lack of shared experience and lack of newness," wrote the author. "Once a couple hits the point after 6-12 months together where the 'newness' of the other person starts to wear off, a serious test of their compatibility will arise."
Some couples are able to keep the fire burning. But those who can't will likely break up. And that's when things get real... This love is the one that shakes us to our core, cracks us open, and changes us, warns Nafousi. "The one that can leave us feeling guarded, distrusting, and hurt," she adds.
The life coach says that while the heartbreak from this relationship can be debilitating, it propels us forward, forcing us to grow and change. It is through this love and heartbreak that we discover our inner strength and eventually learn what we do want from love, and what we really don't.
#19
Top Tier
#20
LOL Ctto
The OG of love is commitment. This is when you emotionally accept and love the other person's flaws as much as their strengths, says Manson. According to him, scientists have shown that couples who reach the pinnacle of commitment "merge" their senses of self.
When researchers observed neural activation patterns in long-term, loved-up couples, they found that "if you ask a man married for 20 years to think about his wife getting into a car accident, and then ask him to think about himself getting into a car accident, the same 'self' spots in his brain will light up."
#22
So Real ;)
Child of the Stars 2 weeks ago
If that's your thing. My personality is quiet and reserved, so my "best thing ever" would be someone who could just sit in silence with me.
#23
True Love
Child of the Stars 2 weeks ago
My grandpa had sleep apnea from an accident as a teenager. This was before the c-pap machines, so my grandma used to say she couldn't sleep without his snoring because it meant he was breathing.
#24
He Did It
It's "the unconditional love that marks the beginning of forever," writes Nafousi. It's being at peace, feeling at home, totally loved and accepted. No games. No drama.
"You feel more yourself with them than you ever have before, and you constantly inspire each other to be the best versions of yourselves. When you face an obstacle or a challenge in the relationship, you work together to overcome it because you are both committed to your future," she explains.
And it's the kind of love we wish for you...
#25
Aww So Cute
#26
All Of This Energy Is The End Goal! 🥹😍🥰
#27
Thought This Was Cute
#28
If That Isn't True Love I Don't Know What Is
#29
A Real Relationship Goal Indeed!
#30
It's So Easy I Promise!
Cerise Hood 2 weeks ago
Reminds me of the book with a page that said "You may fascinate a woman by giving her a piece of cheese"
#31
Just You
#32
True Love
Geoffrey Scott 2 weeks ago
My daughter and a 'chocolate young man' were sweet on each other. We were at one of her BB games and a former friend asked.."so what do you think?".."about what?"..'M-- and Q---"".."ummm, they like each other?".."but he's black!"..."HE IS??? Huh..didn't notice, now if he was his playah brother, there would be an issue".
#33
Effort Matter Most
#34
True
#35
Love
#36
Men R So Nonchalant
#37
Stop Worrying💕💕
Gavin Johnson 2 weeks ago
That ain’t dumb s**t, that’s working out the internal structure and the manufacturing processes required. Wanna know how folk know random approaches to random situations? They think about unrelated ‘dumb s**t’ and when a weird situation crops up that doesn’t have an immediate or obvious answer they think it through, they have adaptable thought processes. You want them on your team. Dumb s**t? Pfff.
#38
But Still He Love's Me..😂
#40
She Found Herself A Real One…
#41
Destined For Day One
#42
I Can Agree
#43
Best Feeling Ever
Doodles1983 2 weeks ago
Mine reaches out in his sleep to find me if we aren't touching in some way.
#44
Thank Me Later 😅
Tabitha 2 weeks ago
Just drive with them for any amount of time, especially if it’s your car and they’re just the passenger. If they don’t become the classic backseat (or side seat) driver, then they’re a real keeper. If they bug TF out of you and you want to pull over to tie them up, duct tape their mouth, and throw them in the trunk, then it ain’t gonna last.
#45
Love Knows No Limits
Child of the Stars 2 weeks ago
That's how I feel about my kiddos. It doesn't matter that it's not interesting to me, but they get all excited, so I listen and try to come up with questions about it so they know I'm listening.
#46
Is This True?
#47
Me
Multa Nocte 2 weeks ago
That's why you always ask, "Do you want to vent or do you want to explore possible solutions?" before you jump in.
#49
If The Effort Is Mutual, Love Can Last A Lifetime
#50
When He Trusts You With His Soft Side 😍
Tabitha 2 weeks ago (edited)
Men, take note. All that tough, aloof, “alpha male”, incel, red pill horseshit is just that, horseshit. It does not really impress women at all. In fact, it pretty much turns us completely off. But it is 100% guaranteed to impress other MEN, and only other men. So yeah sure, keep it up. Just be sure to clean your favorite sock once in a while. You know, the one you keep under your mattress.
Note: this post originally had 95 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
Poll Question
Have you ever experienced 'true love' as described in the article?
Yes, and it's life-changing
I think so, but not sure
No, not yet
I don't believe in true love
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Marvin HeartofGold (she/them) 2 weeks ago
I'm so happy for the (currently) 58% of the people polled that have experienced finding the one for them! I hope I can join your ranks some day.
Marvin HeartofGold (she/them) 2 weeks ago
I'm so happy for the (currently) 58% of the people polled that have experienced finding the one for them! I hope I can join your ranks some day.
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