Most people want to be loved and love someone else, although few ever stop and think about exactly what love is.
In general there are two types of love we feel for other people.
First there is Compassionate love, the love you feel for your family and friends and then there is the love you definitely do not feel for your grandmother, Passionate love, an intense love with a sexual or romantic quality.
In between Compassionate love and passionate love there are a range of different types of love we feel, all with varying degrees of passion, commitment and intimacy.
They are; Linking: You feel intimate enough with this person to share your feelings and thoughts but there is no passion or commitment.
Infatuation: A one night stand or something you felt during high school.
All passion with no intimacy or commitment.
Empty love: There is commitment but no intimacy or passion.
A good example is a married couple that remains together out of commitment to each other despite the lack of passion or intimacy.
Fatuous love: High levels of commitment and passion but very low levels of intimacy.
Similar to Shakespeare's portrayal of Romeo and Juliet, who never really even got a chance to talk but were totally committed and very passionate.
Companionate love: A good friendship.
You are committed and intimate but lack passion.
Consummate love: The one everyone want, deep intimacy, total commitment and high passion, all consuming.
Experts believe that our romantic relationships as adults are determined by our attachments as children.
Children that did not form strong attachments with primary caretakers may "fall in love" too easily, seeking extreme closeness too quickly, only to be pushed away by others due to their clinginess, which they then perceive as rejection.
These insecure adults then lash out at the other person and drive them away.
A vicious cycle, that can be very self destructive.