The authors of the study concluded that getting pleasure from unhappiness is inherent in a relatively small group of people who are not able to come to terms with their loss (losses) for a long time and are not able to leave this fact in the past.
The reason for this is physiology. As it turns out, long-term grief activates neurons located in the “pleasure center” of the brain, presumably giving the memories of a loved one a certain “narcotic” character. Thus, a suffering person develops a psychological dependence on such memories.
This conclusion was drawn from a survey of twenty-three women, eleven of whom experienced deep grief and twelve moderate. These subjects were chosen for a simple reason: if a close relative of a woman suffers from breast cancer, then her chances of getting sick are also significantly increased – therefore, the feelings of loss are more personal in nature.
All test subjects were shown photographs of deceased mothers or sisters, while the activity of their brains was studied in parallel. It turned out that when viewing photos of deceased relatives, the pleasure center became more active in inconsolable women, and this effect was not observed in women who were more relaxed about their loss.
Based on materials
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