Kourtney Kardashian blames 'generational trauma' for family's romantic decisions

Kourtney Kardashian tried to broach a conversation about epigenetics and generational trauma on the season finale of "The Kardashians," the product of her ongoing "self-awareness journey."

“I didn’t start a self-awareness journey knowing what I was doing. I started therapy through a toxic relationship and then learned so much about myself, about my family, about why I do certain things, about our childhood wounds, about how they show up in intimate relationships ,generational trauma," Kourtney told the camera.

Kourtney, whose frankness has been praised this season by audiences, reflected on certain traits she and her sisters might have inherited from past generations.

"My mom is a massive control freak. I think we all get a bit of controlling nature from her," Kourtney told the camera.

And, according to Kourtney, that's not necessarily aspirational. "When I'm around her, and I'm around Khloé, it makes never want to be that way," she said.

Speaking to mom Kris Jenner and sister Khloé Kardashian, Kourtney attempted to ask her mom how she got to be the way she is.

"What about you makes you have this need to be so controlling? Are you not curious about yourself?" Kourtney asked. "You weren't like that in your 20s. But also, you had a husband who leaded the way."

"And now, you lead the way," Kourtney and Kris both said.

Kris evaded having a conversation about attending therapy, even though Kourtney certainly tried to start one. Kourtney then suggested that the women in the family inherited a "pattern" from one another.

"True has eggs in her body. She was inside of you when you were inside of mom," she told Khloé of her eldest daughter True.

"So basically, I made True," Kris said.

Kourtney continued, "So MJ's trauma ... is inside of me, because it inside of mom, because mom was in their body," referring to her grandmother Mary Jo "MJ" Shannon. "Their traumas get passed down but it's within ... a lot of the things we have in us."

Kourtney said there are "patterns to break if you don't want to pass them down to your kids."

Khloé put the pieces together: "You think choosing partners is a genetic thing?"

"I think it's generational. I think it's from MJ," Kourtney said.

Kris chimed in saying she thought MJ picked an "amazing partner." Kourtney retorted, "She was married three times. I'm sure by the third time..."

She continued with her theory, saying, "We all have picked people we thought we could change different things about them. And we can't."

Kris was not persuaded. "I'm not even thinking about that. I've got a full, fabulous life ... why am I going back ?" Kris said.

"My mom tries to not face these types of topics," Kourtney said.

Days later, though, Kourtney said her mom sent a video about "that one daughter in the family who does things her way and who holds all the family's generational trauma."

"I was like, 'OK, you were listening,'" Kourtney said to herself after receiving the video.

While Kris, Kourtney and Khloé never name their ex-partners by name, they are present in this conversation. "The Kardashians" and the family's past show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" tracked their family's on-again, off-again romantic relationships with various partners.

Kourtney recently married and had a son with Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker. Previously, she was in a long-term relationship with Scott Disick, with whom she shares three children.

Kris was married and divorced twice, to Robert Kardashian and Caitlyn Jenner, and is currently in a relationship with Corey Gamble. Kris opened up about infidelity in her marriage to Robert Kardashian earlier this season.

Khloé was married to basketball player Lamar Odom and shares two children with basketball player Tristan Thompson. In the time they were a couple, Tristan has been involved in multiple sex scandals, which they address this season.

Kim Kardashian has been married three times, and is currently enjoying being single, as she said in the Season Four finale. She shares four children with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.

"

This article was originally published on TODAY.com