Michelle (not her real name), 19, fell in love with her Literature teacher in her first year of junior college. And she still harbours romantic feelings towards him even though she has finished school.

She can pinpoint the exact incident that made her realise she was attracted to him.

'At first I just thought that he was a really cool teacher because of his unconventional views,' she said.

'I'm quite a low profile student and normally teachers don't notice me. But once he singled out my work and praised it in class and I was really touched. It was then that I realised that his opinion meant a lot to me.'

While this is the first time that Michelle has ever had a crush on a teacher, she does not think that it is too unusual or alarming.

'I don't think that this is normal, but then again there are many different types of love,' she said.

She thinks that her teacher is an ideal life partner.

'I need security and affection and someone who appreciates me for who I am. I feel that he's this person.'

While she was still in junior college, each day was an emotional roller-coaster.

'I would look out for him on a daily basis. When I caught a glimpse of him I'd smile to myself. Sometimes I felt like crying when he treated me nicely.'

She was so infatuated with her teacher that she could not leave school without making her feelings known to him.

' I approached him in person and talked to him. I bought him a gift that cost almost $50 and I wrote him a message describing my feelings for him,' she said.

'But after that I felt a bit sad, because I knew that the situation was hopeless and that it wouldn't go anywhere.'

For now, the flame that she carries in her heart for her teacher has yet to die out. Dr Clarice Hong, consultant psychiatrist and psychotherapist at Raffles Hospital, said that while the feeling may be intense, 'it's probably just an infatuation'. 'I would say the 19-year-old is still maturing. She sees in her teacher admirable qualities or achievements which younger men have not accomplished yet.'

Dr Daniel Fung, chief of the department of child and adolescent psychiatry at the Institute of Mental Health, said that infatuations are extremely common, but that taken one step further, they could become an obsession.

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times on Mar 12, 2008.