Wired for Love: A Neuroscientist's Journey Through Romance, Loss, and the Essence of Human Connection

Summary

From the world’s foremost neuroscientist of romantic love comes a personal story of connection and heartbreak that brings new understanding to an old truth: better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

At thirty-seven, Dr. Stephanie Cacioppo was content to be single. She was fulfilled by her work on the neuroscience of romantic love, how finding and growing with a partner literally reshapes our brains. That was, until she met the foremost neuroscientist of loneliness. A whirlwind romance led to marriage and sharing an office at the University of Chicago. After seven years of being inseparable at work and home, she lost her beloved husband, following a devastating battle with cancer.

In this book, Cacioppo tells not just not just a science story but also a love story. She shares revelatory insights into how we fall in love and why, what makes love last, and how we process love lost—all grounded in cutting-edge findings in brain chemistry and behavioral science.

Woven through it all is her moving personal story, from astonishment, to unbreakable bond, to grief and healing. Her experience and her work enrich each other, creating a singular blend of science and lyricism that is essential reading for anyone looking for connection.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.