The desire to have a date for weddings and parties can make a girl work to keep a relationship going even if the guy is a loser. It’s easier to learn to love Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” than to push the wrong guy over one. So she sticks it out and becomes more like him to make the relationship work.
 Keep in mind that the better you know someone, the easier it is to open up and be yourself around that person. It’s normal to be a Chameleon with strangers because you don’t know where you stand with them yet. Sometimes we accommodate people until we get a feel for which jokes, views, and attitudes we can get away with. Eventually, if we’re not comfortable around them, we minimize contact.
 If you’ve been dating someone for a few months and you still feel like you’re playing the “get to know you” game, the relationship is not right. You should never feel as if you have to be someone else when you’re around the guy you adore. A relationship is not only about how he treats you. It’s also about who you are when you’re with him. And for it to work, you have to be an even happier version of the real you when he’s by your side.
 From The 10 Women You'll Be Before 35 Copyright © 2005, Alison James. Used by permission of Adams Media. All rights reserved. Photo © istock/Chris Schmidt