Studies Show That Being Best Friends With Your Mom Makes Your Life Better In (Almost) Every Way
You get a better life all around when your mom is your bestie.
rifmi-pro from Getty Images | Canva Pro There’s something almost magnetic about daughters who are best friends with their moms. It’s not just the matching tattoos or the inside jokes from childhood. It’s the ease with which they exist in the world more emotionally secure, more communicative, more grounded. And according to science, this kind of relationship isn't just heartwarming, it’s transformative.
Research shows that daughters who share close, supportive relationships with their moms tend to do better in nearly every area of life, from relationships to mental health to even their physical well-being. This bond can help daughters feel more emotionally safe, more confident in their decision-making, and more capable of regulating their feelings. Basically, it gives them a kind of quiet superpower: inner stability in a chaotic world.
Being best friends with your mom makes you more resilient.
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A study published in the Annals of Psychophysiology found that when moms show high levels of resilience, their daughters are more likely to develop similar coping mechanisms, reducing the risk of depression and anxiety.
And this emotional synchronicity isn't coincidental. A 2016 study published in the Journal of Neuroscience revealed that the part of the brain responsible for processing emotions is more similar between moms and daughters than any other parent-child pairing. This neurological alignment may explain why daughters often find unparalleled emotional understanding and support in their mothers.
A close bond with your mom improves your other relationships, too.
The benefits of this bond extend beyond emotional health. Research from the University of Georgia suggests that daughters who perceive their mothers as supportive are more likely to assert themselves in relationships and maintain higher self-esteem. This empowerment can lead to healthier interpersonal relationships and a stronger sense of self.
It makes sense. A mom who becomes your best friend is often the first person who taught you how to speak up for yourself, how to set boundaries, how to comfort yourself without collapsing.
She was your mirror growing up. And when that mirror reflected back love, support, and non-judgmental presence iIt changed the entire way you show up in relationships with yourself and everyone else.
It’s also deeply healing.
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Many women are actively trying to end cycles of generational trauma, working hard to give their daughters something they didn’t have. And when that shift happens, when a daughter grows up feeling emotionally safe, prioritized, and truly seen by her mother, it becomes the foundation for a completely different kind of adulthood. Not perfect, but emotionally fluent. Able to trust. Able to receive love without second-guessing it.
Even physically, the benefits show up.
When you feel emotionally secure, your body follows. Stress hormones are lower. Sleep is better. Immune systems function more effectively. That unconditional support from someone who picks up when you call at 2am or sends a text just to say "I’m proud of you" wires your nervous system for peace.
A study highlighted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that programs aimed at strengthening mother-daughter bonds led to much better mental and physical health in both parties, as well as a big reduction in daughters seeking to engage in risky behaviors.
Of course, not every mother-daughter relationship looks like this.
Sometimes being close with your mom isn’t possible, safe, or even healthy. But when it is, when that relationship becomes one of mutual respect, warmth, and emotional safety, it doesn’t just feel good. It can change everything.
So if you're the kind of daughter who tells your mom everything or the kind of mom who's building that bridge with your daughter, know that you're investing in something real. Something that research confirms is worth it. Because daughters with best-friend moms? They don’t just laugh a little louder or hug a little longer. They live better. Period.
Micki Spollen is YourTango’s Editorial Director. Micki has her Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism & Media Studies from Rutgers University and over 10 years of experience as a writer and editor covering astrology, spirituality, and human interest topics.
