Houston Family Therapist Says Neuroscience Can Explain Why Moms and Teen Girls Fight More at Holiday Time

HOUSTON, Nov. 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- That Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa offer plenty of time for families to spend together is both good news and bad news, especially for families with teenage girls and stressed-out mothers whose relationships can turn combative fairly quickly.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151116/287722
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151116/287723

Marriage and family therapist Colleen O'Grady says that a teenage daughter's brain is already hard-wired for drama because of its undeveloped prefrontal cortex. That means that teen girls frequently default to having their lower brain or limbic system in charge, even before adding in the stresses of finals, projects and end of semester grades that coincide with the holidays.  Making the situation even more volatile, she adds, is that mothers stressed out by extra demands on their time for cooking, shopping, entertaining, and work deadlines are more likely to overreact to their daughter's outbursts.

As a mother and author of the new book Dial Down the Drama: Reducing Conflict and Reconnecting with Your Teenage Daughter—A Guide for Mothers Everywhere, O'Grady has suggestions for altering the dynamic and making everyone's holidays happier.

She explains:

• What parents need to know about the physiological reasons for teenage girls' extreme mood swings and reactions so they don't take her everyday rejections and blowups personally.
• How to jettison unnecessary holiday chores and expectations without feeling guilty. When moms are stressed out they also operate on the lower, more primitive portion of their brains.
• The importance of planning a strictly fun mother/daughter activity or two during the holidays.
• How to set a holiday intention in order to dial up the joy, love, and gratitude.
• Tips for enjoying a daughter's teenage years more and being the parent she needs most.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Colleen O'Grady is a Houston-based licensed marriage and family therapist and a recent survivor of her daughter's teenage turbulence. She has worked with hundreds of clashing mothers and daughters in her private practice and with desperate moms worldwide through her web-based Power Your Parenting programs. More than 10,000 mothers follow O'Grady on her Facebook page. Dial Down the Drama, her first book, was released by AMACOM in November.

AVAILABILITY: Houston, nationwide by arrangement and via telephone
CONTACT: Colleen O'Grady, 713-408-6112; Email

SOURCE Colleen O’Grady