--- title: You Asked: Can a Break Up Make You Sick? description: Being love sick is a real thing: a break up or end of a relationship can weaken your immune system. Here's how to get over a breakup. canonical: https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/ author: Markham Heid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-20T14:51:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:52:28.956Z article:section: Health og:title: You Asked: Can a Breakup Make You Sick? og:description: Love sickness is a real thing og:url: https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd9f0c4633dc9d9f/6988d72586f68e87c56e5b6d/forgiving-other-people-good-for-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: forgiving-other-people-good-for-health og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: You Asked: Can a Breakup Make You Sick? twitter:description: Love sickness is a real thing twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd9f0c4633dc9d9f/6988d72586f68e87c56e5b6d/forgiving-other-people-good-for-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Asked: Can a Breakup Make You Sick? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6afceb11-1866-4a54-a038-bf3e41712698&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: This is the Meanest Reason to Break Up with Someone [Watch (HLS stream): This is the Meanest Reason to Break Up with Someone](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Os3J2sLq.m3u8) (1:30)  _Published 2017-09-08. Rejection hurts. But it stings even more when you're turned down for another person_ by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Sep 20, 2017 2:51 PM UTC by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Sep 20, 2017 2:51 PM UTC Love hurts, but a breakup can be agony—even beyond the emotional pain. If you’ve gone through a highly emotional split, researchers say your immune system can take a significant hit. “Breaking up with a partner leaves people feeling blue and lonely, even when it’s something they wanted,” says Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, a professor of psychiatry and director of the Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research at Ohio State University. “Time heals wounds, and people recover, but the time course for recovery is related to how much a person continues to be preoccupied with thoughts of their former partner.” In her [research](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889159199905524), Kiecolt-Glaser has found this preoccupation with a lost love can take the form of pining or rage, but in either case, those thoughts are linked with feelings of [loneliness](http://time.com/3747784/loneliness-mortality/), [depression](http://time.com/4876098/new-hope-for-depression/) and—believe it or not—[poorer immune function](http://time.com/4715823/cold-symptoms-sick-loneliness/). Stress hormones are a likely culprit. Your immune system’s cells contain receptors that react to many different hormones, including some related to stress, depression and other breakup-induced emotional responses, she explains. If the fallout from a breakup keeps your stress hormones elevated for weeks or even months, that can lead to inflammation—as well as shifts in your [gut microbiome](http://time.com/4505831/weight-fat-microbiome/)—that could in turn lower your body’s defenses against illness-causing pathogens. Those shifts may also exacerbate feelings of pain associated with existing conditions like [arthritis](http://time.com/4825829/fish-diet-rheumatoid-arthritis/). “The key issue is psychological stress,” says David Sbarra, a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona. The greater your anguish after a split and the longer that feeling persists, the bigger the hit your immune system is likely to take, he says. His [research](http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1088868308315702) indicates that, after months or years of coupledom, you and your partner can become deeply, even biologically linked. Your brain and body become so accustomed to having your partner around that once that person is absent, your [sleep](http://time.com/collection/guide-to-sleep/), appetite and even temperature regulation can be thrown out of whack. Like a planet unmoored from its star, your post-breakup self can feel out-of-orbit and adrift in space. On the other hand, for those who feel relieved or [happy](http://time.com/collection/guide-to-happiness/) after ending a relationship, there’s unlikely to be a negative effect on immune function, Sbarra adds. To protect yourself from all of these breakup-inflicted wounds, try getting out of your own head and into social situations that connect you with close friends or family. Sbarra says people who spend more time with others, socialize more and who have more substantive conversations with loved ones are less likely to suffer an immune-system hit. **MORE**: [This Is The Meanest Reasons To Break Up With Someone](http://time.com/4931512/rejection-breakup/) “Having [good interpersonal support in other relationships](http://time.com/4809325/friends-friendship-health-family/?iid=sr-link9) is particularly important following a breakup or divorce,” says Kiecolt-Glazer. “Social support is important for health and immune function at any time, but it assumes even greater importance when one’s partner is gone.” Eating a healthy diet, [exercising](http://time.com/collection/guide-to-exercise/) and avoiding alcohol are also likely to boost your immune system and may help you stay well after a split. Rediscovering your sense of self—that is, getting back to the stuff that defined you before your relationship—also seems to help, says Grace Larson, a researcher and graduate student in psychology at Northwestern University who, along with Sbarra, authored [a 2015 study](http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1948550614563085) on breakups and emotional recovery. That rediscovery starts with something as simple as changing the way you think and talk about yourself and your ex. Larson says that using terms like “we” and “us”—rather than singular pronouns like “he” and “I” or “her” and “me”—is associated with longer-lasting pain. She also recommends taking up the activities that thrilled you before you got together with your former mate. If you used to sing karaoke, cook seafood or complete triathlons before you met your ex, get back into those activities. “In our study, people who strongly agreed with statements like, ‘I have become re-acquainted with the person I was before the relationship,’ tended to also feel less lonely and to have fewer upsetting thoughts about their breakup,” she says. Ending a close relationship is rough, and it’s normal to need time to grieve and reflect. But the sooner you can get back on your feet, back out with your friends and back in touch with the person you were before your ex, the sooner your immune system will return to full power. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/"},"headline":"You Asked: Can a Breakup Make You Sick?","datePublished":"2017-09-20T14:51:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-08T09:52:28.956Z","description":"Absolutely—especially if the emotional fallout is extreme.","url":"https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/","keywords":["Sex/Relationships","Divorce","relationships","Love","Relationship","Breakup","immune system","relationship advice"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd9f0c4633dc9d9f/6988d72586f68e87c56e5b6d/forgiving-other-people-good-for-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Markham Heid","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/markham-heid/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd9f0c4633dc9d9f/6988d72586f68e87c56e5b6d/forgiving-other-people-good-for-health.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"forgiving-other-people-good-for-health","caption":"weekend","creditText":"Jessica Pettway for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/sexrelationships/","name":"Sex/Relationships"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4949554/how-to-get-over-a-break-up/","name":"You Asked: Can a Breakup Make You Sick?"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"This is the Meanest Reason to Break Up with Someone","description":"Rejection hurts. 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