Many people don't believe they seek partners who resemble their parents. Still, most of us gravitate toward relationships like that we've seen in childhood. You can notice it the most at the beginning of your relationship. Usually, when people start to date, they tend to be more careful and gentle toward each other. It varies from admiring their beauty to creating pet names.

Those things remind us of childhood. Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, believed that even adults are just babies craving parental love. Our ‘inner child’ takes the lead when we pick our partners. Why is that? Kids tend to create an image of a perfect caregiver, also known as the Imago figure. This figure resembles our parents and meets our needs. As we unconsciously seek a person who reminds us of an ideal caregiver, the Imago figure greatly impacts how we pick our future partners.

Take some time to delve into your childhood experiences and examine how they're shaping your current interpersonal dynamics. Think about the environment you grew up in, and how these elements may be playing out in your current interactions. Sharing such insights with your partner can significantly enhance mutual understanding. It can also foster a deeper sense of empathy for each other’s vulnerabilities.

Yet, our choices are also shaped by the magnetism of opposites. Just as an Imago figure influences our choice of partners, we are equally drawn to traits that complement our own. Quiet and loud, punctual, and the one who's always late, studious, and chill. Sometimes, it seems like those couples won't last long, but in reality, they stay together for years. They work out mostly because each partner craves a sense of wholeness. Stepping into adulthood means losing some traits along with a sense of completeness.