Length 18:43
Episode 2
What Alcohol Does to the Text You Send Your Ex?
One night, hour by hour: why the 2 AM message feels brilliant, and why it reads so differently at eleven.
Watch on YouTube ↗The 2AM Guy · Episode 1 · 12:49
What Happens to Your Body in the First 24 Hours After a Breakup?
It's 2:07 AM, it's over, and your body has already started reacting. This is what the research says happens inside you over the next 24 hours: the adrenaline alarm, the cortisol wave you keep topping up, why your brain treats heartbreak partly like physical pain, and why the urge to text her feels so reasonable.
No scientist has tracked a man hour by hour on the night it ended. This video puts two kinds of research side by side: what bodies do in the hours after a serious shock, and brain scans of people who had been left. Treat it as a map, not a stopwatch.
Studies mentioned (11)
- Kross et al. (2011), PNAS: social rejection and physical pain share brain regions
- Fisher et al. (2010), Journal of Neurophysiology: romantic rejection and reward and craving regions
- Bowen & Marlatt (2009), Psychology of Addictive Behaviors: "urge surfing" in smokers
- Unrod et al. (2014), Nicotine & Tobacco Research: cue exposure and craving
- Field et al. (2009): breakup distress, intrusive thoughts and sleep in university students
- Sbarra et al. (2013), Clinical Psychological Science: expressive writing after separation
- Bootzin & Perlis (2011): stimulus control therapy for insomnia
- Langeslag & van Strien (2016), PLOS ONE: regulating love feelings after a breakup
- Larson & Sbarra (2015), Social Psychological and Personality Science: self-concept clarity after separation
- Segerstrom & Miller (2004), Psychological Bulletin: stress and the immune system (meta-analysis)
- Cortisol time course after acute stress (review)
This video is for information and education. It is not medical or mental health advice. If you're struggling or feel unsafe, contact a doctor or your local emergency services.
More episodes
Length 18:43
The videos cover one night each. The book covers the whole way out.
Get the book + audiobook — $24.99Read it or listen to it — both included
43-page PDF · about half an hour to read · 46-minute audiobook · instant download
thedonttextyourex.com is the home of Don't Text Your Ex - a 43-page PDF for men written by Kamil Zaleński, originally published as How to Get Over a Breakup. It is not connected to any other book, film, app or song of a similar name.