When relationship patterns repeat, is it just bad luck? Clinical psychologist Dr. Laurie Betito hears that question in her office and offers another place to look: what makes a new partner seem familiar in the first place?
After his divorce, Shane was told that if dating felt easy, he might be repeating an old pattern. Laurie adds a question to the advice: what kind of easy? That distinction is worth hearing before taking ease or discomfort as a sign of anything.
In one of Laurie’s examples, a woman grows up trying to get her father’s attention. Years later, she’s drawn to partners who are emotionally unavailable, and there’s one thought that keeps the story going: maybe this time it’ll work. What makes another try seem like a chance at a different ending?
Topics: Relationship patterns, dating after divorce, emotional familiarity, emotional availability, repetition compulsion
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Originally aired on2026-11-06
