Dear old Mom may have passed more down to you than your hair color and sparkling blue eyes. In fact, you take your mom out on every date you go on. No, not as a chaperone but in your habits and mannerisms of romantic relationships. The way you handle relationships was formed long before you got interested in romantic relationships. The ability to love, trust and handle relationship conflicts forms in infancy, according to researchers. So if your mom had trouble bonding with you as a baby, then you may have trouble bonding with others later in life. A distant mother may foretell the inability to love and be loved later in life. Her relationship with her significant others – spouses, boyfriends, stepdads, or otherwise – may be the example you follow in a relationship.

As children are raised with a certain archetype of a relationship, they learn how to behave in adult relationships…for better or worse. Studies show that children of divorced parents are more likely to have their own marriages end in divorce. Likewise, you may follow Mom’s lead when it comes to learning how women should be treated. If she allowed a man to disrespect or abuse her, then you might allow the same in your adult relationships. Or if she berated and beat down the male figures in your life, you may choose a milquetoast man who will take the abuse without putting up much of a fight. The good news is that you can break any negative patterns in relationships by being aware of them and even seeking therapy to change your behavior.