Yeah, my pretty minor "love" dilemna has made me feel like honeysuckle at some points the last couple of weeks, so I can sympathise here.
It's odd, but even when my best friend stabbed me in the back ages ago, I didn't feel that kind of pain. It was similar, but not as intense as someone I like simply ignoring me.
It just seems to gnaw away, and then it gets worse because you can't stop thinking about it...and every time you think about it, that ache comes back.
Yet when I'm with someone that does like me, it does feel fantastic.
So I suppose as others said above, it is kinda like a drug. I wouldn't be surprised if the endorphins and so on that the brain releases in "love" circumstances have some kind of addictive property to them.
I've found these boards a really great release from some of that tension (it feels like the people here genuinely care) and also found that surrounding yourself with work to do can take the pain away a little.
I'd advise, whenever you're hurting inside, to focus on non-love-related goals that you want to accomplish. Recently I wrote a list of places I want to go, activities to do and skills to improve in my spare time, and I think that really helps.
I feel like I've actually accomplished quite a bit in my life even though I've never really played "the love game" and it's taken a crappy period of bad communication to make me realise that I can cope without love quite happily.
Of course, I imagine a breakup after a long-term relationship is very, very tough...but I still think the same principles apply.
