This is part 4 of our series on Love Addiction. Watch parts 1-3 HERE.

You go into a withdrawal state when you go through a bad breakup. You are in withdrawal from this relationship and this person. So if you're not careful, you will do and say some foolish things that you will regret.

And if you don't get ahold of it, you're going to make it ten times worse, last longer, and make it more painful than it has to be. 

When you go through a bad breakup, you get in this withdrawal state, which puts you in this addicted state of mind and desperation, and it is a dark place to be.

Almost everyone has gone through this at one point or another, and you end up doing things you're not proud of. For example, when you're in a relationship with someone for an extended period, you become dependent on that relationship, co-dependent; you need them in your life. Your body and brain chemistry wires up with your partner's brain and body chemistry, and you need it the same way an alcoholic needs...

What does it look like when you are addicted to someone you're currently in a relationship with? Being in an addicted state is very different than being in love with a person. And if you're unsure what those differences are, you must watch part one.

Being addicted to someone you're in a relationship with happens under a few different circumstances. Let's explore some of them.

One way that you can become addicted to a person you're already in a relationship with is if that person has an addiction or a personality disorder or is narcissistic.

There's a fundamental inconsistency with how that person relates to you. That is what makes it addictive. Addiction is always an illusion. Addiction means chasing something you can't have. So when you're in a relationship with someone who has an addiction or you're in a relationship with someone narcissistic, it's like sometimes they're great. They relate to you, connect you, and you get that serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin, and all...

(Watch Part 1 of This Series HERE)

It can feel agonizing to be addicted to someone you can't have or don't have consistency within a relationship. So when this happens, we build this fantasy life in our head about the possibility of having a relationship with this person that feels so good and exciting and feels like it's the perfect thing.

It's the answer to all your problems, so much so that you become obsessed and addicted. Now, this can happen in a few different ways. You can have a mad crush on someone in your daily life, like maybe he was a boy at school or a woman with whom you work closely. You can also have this addicted type of love for someone you've never met but feel like you know them.

Similar to how sometimes people can fall for a celebrity, an actor, a musician, or a politician because that person is usually putting themselves out there so that you feel like you know them even though they don't know who you are. You build this perfect fantasy world of how having...

Are you in love with the person or addicted to them? Determining the difference between the two is essential because addicted type love almost always ends in disaster.

Sometimes it can be challenging to figure out the difference between, am I in love or addicted? When you're love addicted, it can confuse, mix up feelings, and occasionally cause terrible decision-making. So let's clearly define each, so you'll know which category your situation falls under.

One of the reasons why it's so difficult to figure out the difference between the two is that we tend to use the word love so broadly and cover so many different things or types of love that it needs to be clarified. So, for example, there's romantic love. There's the way you love your best friend. There's the way you love your parents, and there's the way you love your child. All of those are entirely different kinds of love. Wouldn't you agree?

The other reason why this can get messy, confusing, and complicated is the way our...