The rescuer is a woman who attaches herself to partners who are emotionally unstable in some way.

If we filled a fountain with a quarter for every woman who’s loved and tried to save a broken man, we could probably fill Niagara Falls. This destructive relationship pattern – what I call rescuing wounded souls – is one of the most common relationship problems that face women today.

The rescuer is a woman who attaches herself to partners who are emotionally unstable in some way. Though rescuers can be both men and women, the book I wrote on the subject, Overcome Relationship Repetition Syndrome, was primarily for women. So, you might ask, what does the rescuer do and feel in her relationships?

The rescuer focuses on and worries about her partner more than he does about himself. Repeatedly, she finds herself with partners who, at first, seem sweet and have tremendous potential, but before long reveal themselves to be emotionally volatile or unstable, aggressive and controlling, unhappy, or unable to cope with some aspect of their lives. Many of the men rescuers try to save struggle withdepression, severe anxiety, or addictions of some sort.

You might ask yourself why a woman would stay with such a man. For the rescuer, she values love and relationships above all else. When she commits, she is fiercely loyal and she will die trying to help him realize his true potential. Rescuers also often come from families in which they felt the need to take care of a sibling or parent, or in which there was a high level of turmoil and drama. Though she desperately tries to help her partner, what she’s really trying to do is change him. In comparison to other men who are her equals and who are emotionally available, those men often seem boring. What’s more, the love with a man who is emotionally whole wouldn’t seem like real love. For these women, love is about work and, sadly, suffering in the end.