This Belief Is Wrecking Your Love Life. Here's What To Do About It

Monica Parikh is an attorney, writer, and dating coach who aims to empower women to be their best selves and attract healthy, rewarding love. Now, Monica is bringing her in-depth insight and real-world experience to women everywhere. If you’re ready to be the best version of yourself and attract a partner who deserves you, check out Monica’s class: 28 Days to Attracting Your Best Relationship & Building a More Confident You.

Love is often counterintuitive. You may behave in ways that seem "natural" and "normal" but are actually the result of a flawed mindset. For example, too many women adhere to the following dangerous false belief:

"The more I do, the more love I will receive."

Yesterday, I introduced you to Deidre and Mac — the couple who broke up on the eve of their wedding. I asked Deidre if she noticed any negative patterns in their relationship. She related all the ways she helped make Mac's life better. With his breakup by text, she now felt "used" and "discarded."

Deidre was the classic over-giver. In the first few months of their relationship, Deidre would cook Mac a homemade meal once a week. A gourmet chef, Deidre could whip up oven-roasted salmon with garlic mashed potatoes at a moment's notice. Mac swooned over her culinary flair. When he knew he was getting one of Deidre's home-cooked meals, he brought flowers and wine to go with it. His gratitude filled her heart with love and happiness.

Since Mac relished her cooking so much, Deidre thought, she should cook for him more often! She went from cooking Mac a meal one day a week to six days a week. She skipped yoga class. She missed her book club four months in a row. Her girlfriends asked if she had fallen off the face of the earth. She poured herself into her relationship with Mac and did everything short of picking her own crops and fishing on the dock for their dinner.

Not surprisingly, the flowers disappeared. The wine did, too. One time, Mac had the nerve to complain that his entree seemed a little dry! They hadn't had a proper date in months. Why go out when Deidre's kitchen was as good as any five-star restaurant? Deidre was busy shopping, chopping, and cleaning — acting as chef, hostess, and server. And, like an unwatched pot on the stove, she was simmering with a boiling rage.

Deidre's vivacious, free-spirited personality dimmed. In its place, a mothering, passive-aggressive personality took hold. She wondered out loud — with a sneer — where had her prince, Mac, gone? Who was this ungrateful monster in his place? She still did a variety of things to make Mac happy, but they were now performed more out of obligation than sincere love.

When I begin working with a client, I first ask about their relationship history. Then, I ask about their family history. A client's unsatisfactory love life usually mirrors a dysfunctional childhood.

In Deidre's case, her mother was emotionally volatile. Her mother's moods swung on a pendulum, and it was impossible to predict what would cause a change in temperament. Deidre's father dealt with it by "disappearing" for long periods of time as a workaholic. Deidre walked on eggshells — careful not to set her mother off. Deidre did her best to be "perfect" — not asking for much and over-performing in hope of garnering their affection. Deidre got straight A's, cleaned the house, and took care of her siblings. Deidre never felt self-worth for who she was but only for what she could do.

Now, as an adult, she naturally prioritized her partner's needs above her own and over-gave in her relationships with the subconscious expectation that she would "earn" love and affection. When affection diminished in reverse proportion to her over-giving, she grew resentful and angry — an unintended by-product of her own lack of self-care and boundaries!

Women who are "needless" and "over-give" tend to attract emotionally immature partners — "manolescents," as I like to call them — who do not have the ability to reciprocate or assume responsibility. If they do attract a stable partner, their mothering behavior is a huge turnoff.

Today's rule is simple: Love doesn't require DOING; it requires BEING. So, expend the majority of your time BEING your best self.

Looking out for your own best interests, especially in matters of the heart, is a good thing. Pay close attention to how you feel. Say "no" to any request that doesn't feel good. Be wary of playing house with someone who hasn't given you a real, substantial commitment. Girlfriends don't perform wifely duties. Not without, as Beyoncé sang, putting a ring on it.