Is love at first sight really possible?

Anyone who has ever read a Nicholas Sparks novel or a Shakespeare play, or sat through a Disney classic or Hollywood rom-com, will be familiar with the concept of love at first sight. 

According to an annual “Singles in America” survey of more than 5,000 singles, 59% of men and 49% of women in 2014 said they believe in love at first sight.

But has it ever happened to you? Can it even really happen, or is it simply sexual attraction?

While Romeo indicates his sudden passion for Juliet through amorous monologues and rom-coms use that sudden swell of heart-string tugging music to show us that a couple are made for each other, it may not be so clear-cut in real life. Indeed, how can we fall in love after one quick glance? How can we know we want to spend the rest of our lives with someone, without even having got to know them yet? 

Dr Stephanie Ortigue of Syracuse University tells us that feelings of love can occur just 0.2 seconds after first laying eyes on someone. A different study by Dr Helen E. Fisher states that love at first sight could be a mating shortcut hardwired into our physiology. According to Dr Fisher:

'Even love at first sight is a basic mammalian response that is developed in other animals and our ancestors inherited to speed up the mating process.'

So as to make sure our genes are passed on, humans have evolved to fall in love as quickly as possible. How impressive is that?!

But how do we know that it's love and not lust? 

A study from the University of Geneva suggests that we focus on somebody's face when we're falling in love, but on their body if it's lust.... 

Which I think we can all understand.
Alternatively, Psychoanalyst Roland Gori believes we can create a frame of mind where we’re more likely to fall in love instantly. 

‘We need to believe that, on some level, something is missing from our lives. When we feel “complete”, that we’ve found everything we want, we’re not as open to the possibility that someone else can heal our pain.’

Even more surprising is the theory that love at first sight is more likely to happen to those who are good at eye contact: holding someone's gaze creates more of an intense, intimate connection that we might feel was love at first sight.
Overall, it is clear that love at first sight is more than just a whimsical myth. However, whether that instantaneous, all-consuming attraction can last into a fully fledged relationship is another question altogether... 

Sources:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/love-at-first-sight-is-real-if-you-believe-1429543032 
http://www.sciencedump.com/content/it-possible-fall-love-first-sight-science-has-answer
Psychology Today