Some men turn into boys and their wives into mothers

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When Men Are Boys and Wives Are Mothers
Some men turn into boys and their wives into mothers.

Why do relationships become dysfunctional? There are a myriad of possible answers. Here is a notable one: The tendency for the male partner to become the child in the relationship, while his female partner becomes the mother. People react to this topic as if it is a common phenomenon that most people are aware of. Yet many couples continue to fall into this trap and few people understand how it might occur.

For many married men, the wife may start to become a mother figure. She may encourage less play (hanging out with friends, heavy drinking, etcetera) and behaving in a more grown-up fashion. Here is the male take on this sea change: "Before we got married she had fun, too. She and I would go to a club together, she would drink and we would dance. Now she wants no part of it." This mothering behavior often becomes even more pronounced when children enter the relationship.

There is no point in blaming either party, but both men and women need to understand that these learned roles are negatively impacting their relationship.

PsychologyToday

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I had a thread earlier where I remarked on my insistence that I would never go to a gender reveal party. "you'll go if your wife tells you to go" [paraphrasing] one poster opined. Others tended to agree.

What's happened to our men? I don't know if you understand this, but my wife isn't my mom. She doesn't order me to do things. I'm open to discuss anything, but if I do something, it's because I agreed to it, not because I was issued an edict. Now, by the same token, I don't demand things of my wife. She's not my servant; the respect goes both ways. She doesn't blow me on command, and I'm not going to accompany her to a gender reveal party. Again, it works both ways.

Don't let your wife be your mother, bros.