Love Sickness

Love Sickness is a particular disease that seems to be contracted by the empresses of the Kuja tribe.
==Overview==
The disease basically develops as an exceptionally extreme version of the emotions that lovers would suffer while courting each other. The disease seems to be a psychosomatic illness.
According to Elder Nyon, the feelings of emotion are "like a hurricane" hitting when least expected. The victim suffers unbearable pain in their heart when their love attempts to leave the island and even mentioning the date of leaving is enough to cause agony. However, when their love is present, the victim may display usual strength when needed be, or possibly be rendered powerless. As seen with Hancock, they can become a completely different person, possibly even blinded by their love for the person so much that they do not acknowledge anyone else around them (or even their love for that matter, as Hancock demonstrated). No one matters more to them and every action their love does is interpreted incorrectly by the sufferer.
==Afflicted Empresses==
*Many empresses of the past have died because of their suppressed emotions.
*Elder Nyon was able to survive the illness by leaving the island after falling in love with a currently unnamed man, the current status of their relationship is unknown.
*Shakuyaku survived the illness by leaving the island.
*Tritoma died from the illness.
*Boa Hancock, having fallen in love with Monkey D. Luffy, contracted the disease. However, she managed to hold it off when she accepted her feelings and decided to leave the island with Luffy. Slight symptoms have resurfaced, such as barely eating or sleeping while she was unsure of Luffy's condition, so she is most likely not cured. Sometime later, she collapsed when her heart started pounding faster.
==Symptoms==
This disease occurs when an empress falls in love with a man. If they suppress their emotions, it weakens them and causes extreme pain. Their health continues to decline and eventually leads to their death. This disease has killed many Kuja empresses in the past. It is unknown if the illness can be contracted by normal Kuja citizens.
In order to cure the disease, the empresses must accept their emotions and follow the loved one. This means that leaving Amazon Lily seems to be a prerequisite for the survival of the recipient, since the former Empresses Gloriosa and Shakuyaku are currently the only known survivors, and they are both known to have left the island at some point in order to pursue romance. Gloriosa also implied that if Hancock, another sufferer of the disease, follows her beloved Luffy (which means leaving the island), she would not die. Outside of this cure, it is unknown if this disease can be cured by other means or if there is a cure specifically intended for it.
==Trivia==
*The phrase "love is a hurricane" was first used by Sanji back in the Arlong Park Arc. Nyon reveals it to be an East Blue original dictum.
==References==
==External Links==
*Love Sickness - A Wikipedia article on love sickness.
*Broken heart syndrome - A Wikipedia article on broken heart syndrome.
==Site Navigation==
es:Enfermedad del amor
fr:L'Ouragan de l'Amour
zh:相思病
Category:Sicknesses