Mom advice you should actually listen to: your mother may annoy the piss out of you at times, but some of the classic kernels of wisdom she spews apparently have real merit. Find out when you need to pay mind to her two cents.

* Let's be honest. When your mother offers up one of her many insights into your life, you probably either ignore her or wonder what the hell she's talking about. Well, guess what? It turns out that a lot of those universal nuggets of motherly knowledge are--shocker!--dead-on. You might as well brace your-self now for the I-told-you-sos.

MOM WISDOM 1

"Just go to sleep, dear. Your problem will work itself out by morning."

What is she, nuts? Actually, no. When you're spent, trying to hash out problems is an exercise in futility. "Your brain doesn't operate well when you're tired. You may feel more emotional and on edge," says Lawrence J. Epstein, MD, author of The Harvard Medical School Guide to a Good Night's Sleep. "After some sleep, you'll have a clearer head, and your problem won't feel so major."

MOM WISDOM 2

"Never be with a man just because you're lonely."

Having any guy is not better than being alone, agrees family therapist Karen Gail Lewis, author of With or Without a Man. "If he bores you to death or, worse, treats you badly, you'll likely feel more depressed than you did when you were single." Plus, if you're with Mr. Wrong, you won't be in dating circulation when Mr. Right comes along.