Mother-daughter partying: How close is too close?

Many of us are familiar with the complex range of emotions behind mother-daughter relationships.

For some of these relationships, the bond between the pair is so uniquely close that they feel like best friends -- companions first, mother and daughter second.

Twenty-two-year-old Vanesa Levine and her 47-year-old mother Nicole are a perfect example of this.

The pair from New York City, recently featured on ABC News, are part of a growing contingent of mother-daughter duos fighting for their right to party together and dance till dawn, because after all, that's what friends do.

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"I discipline her, absolutely," Nicole says about the conflict of trying to be a role model to someone she is downing shots with. "I'm very blunt. ... I feel that she's doing something wrong then I make sure that she stops."

As for Vanesa, she sees no problem with their relationship and indicates that she still regards her mother as an authority figure.

"It's like a mix of best friends plus someone who's telling me what's right, and you know when they're telling you, you listen," she says.

In Nicole's eyes, she deserves every ounce of fun time with her daughter because she spent most of her 20s and 30s constantly working, struggling to make ends meet as a poor single mother.

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In fact, Nicole used to be a cleaning lady until she opened up her own very successful cleaning company, leading to an award in 2011 as "New York Business Woman of the Year" from the National Association of Women Business Owners.

While it seems to be working for Nicole and Vanessa, not all experts agree that mothers and daughters who go clubbing are doing their relationships any favours.

New York City psychologist Kathryn Smerling suggests that because many of the mothers who party with their daughters are divorced, they may be looking for a companion to replace their former husband.

"Subconsciously, that means that the daughter is now responsible for making her mother happy, and making sure that her mother has a good time, when at that age she should be worried about whether she has a good time," she tells ABC.

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"It can very well be destructive to the young girl, especially if the mother is more attractive or more outgoing," she adds. "It engenders competition."

However, 49-year-old mother Debbie Deangelo would beg to differ. She often parties with her 29-year-old daughter Gina, and suggests their bond has nothing to do with competition.

"I was with my ex-husband for 30 years. I've gone through so much s**t, and the saddest part is she had to go through everything with me," Gina says. "We've been the rock for each other."

What are your thoughts on mother-daughter relationships that resemble those of best friends? Tell us why in the comments.