Dear Laine:

Welcome to tiny buddha! I read all of your original post.

“I had a good trip, made some repairs to my relationship with my mother, feeling closer to her as a result.. when I returned from my trip, I quickly realized I was now experiencing a distance and lack of connection between my partner and I“-

– It is possible that closeness with your mother scared you so… instead of undoing the bit of closeness that you felt for her during the visit, you undid the closeness with your boyfriend upon your return to him.

If when you were growing up, closeness with your mother hurt you, it would be no wonder that as an adult, you will be scared of closeness with a man. This would explain the pattern you described: “my relationships have been marked by feeling really invested and into a person, then having my feelings quickly change, experiencing a need to flee, escape“- we want to flee, to escape when we are scared. What do you think?

anita