Science behind Love and Grief - Podcast with Robin May

This episode of the Gresham College Podcast features an interview with Robin May, hosted by Jeoffrey Sarpong. Professor Robin May is a Professor of Infectious Disease at the University of Birmingham, and (interim) Chief Scientist at the UK Health Security Agency.

We cover what's actually happening in your brain when you lose someone, why grief is hardwired from childhood, whether animals grieve, and what ancient burial sites tell us about human emotion 78,000 years ago. Then we shift to love — the physical symptoms of infatuation, why your amygdala shuts down around a new partner, why the honeymoon phase lasts 12–18 months, and why heartbreak can literally feel like withdrawal.
Plus: audience questions on anxiety and love, chatbot grief, abusive relationships, and whether oxytocin is really a "love drug."

Watch Robin's Gresham College lectures here: 

https://youtu.be/5Yrf8IBn9gk
https://youtu.be/5uQWglAwlps

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