A crush, whether it’s mutual or unrequited, is an intense form of infatuation. It’s an emotional state that can make you feel giddy and nervous. You want to spend time with them, and you fantasize about them. In the best case, a crush is fun and exciting, but it can be dangerous when it starts to control your life.
A crush can happen to anyone, at any age. You can have one for a coworker, a classmate, a family member, or even a celebrity. It can also be someone from the past, like a childhood friend or an old lover.
You can’t always choose who you have a crush on, and it’s possible that the person might not be available or willing to reciprocate your feelings. It can be hard to deal with a crush, especially when you don’t know what to do about it. But you can do some things to ease the pain.
Some people think it’s normal to have a crush, and others don’t. Some experts believe that having a crush is a part of normal adolescent development. They argue that teens need to experience the pleasures and pains of crushes in order to learn how to cope with them later in life.
Other experts disagree, and say that having a crush is a sign of mental health issues. They argue that crushes can lead to obsessive thinking and compulsions, which can be harmful for your health. They suggest that if you have a crush, it’s important to talk to your therapist about it.
The dictionary defines a crush as an intense attraction to someone that isn’t mutual or reciprocated. It can be something as small as a school crush, or as large as a crush on a spouse. Whether the crush is mutual or not, it can cause you to feel anxious and giddy, or you may become depressed and hopeless.
While the word “crush” is often associated with adolescents, it can affect adults at any age. A crush can make you feel shy and embarrassed, or you might be tongue-tied when your crush is around. It’s possible that you’re seeking attention and contact from your crush because you have unmet emotional needs. Seeing a therapist can help you build self-awareness and learn healthy ways to meet those needs.
Some studies have shown that crush is common among adolescents, but there’s also evidence that it can happen at any age. One two-year longitudinal study found that 93% of 283 high school students reported having a crush at some point during the course of their education.
Other research has indicated that a crush can be destructive to primary relationships, and may lead to relationship dissolution, particularly in the form of infidelity. But the qualitative data from Study 3 suggested that for those in committed intimate relationships, these crushes are more likely to be seen as “attractions from afar.” This suggests that, while they may provide material for fantasy, they’re not necessarily meant to lead to mating.