February 12th, 2009
Life as a Mother-in Law
She has been the brunt of many a tasteless (and often, cruel) joke; sometimes deemed a meddler and a know-it-all; sometimes made out to be needy and intrusive: she is the mother-in-law. Licensed Educational Psychologist, Olivia Slaughter, and Marriage, Family Therapist, Jean Kubelun have written Life as a Mother-in Law to increase understanding of in-law families and offer a view of these occasionally troubled relationships from the inside-out. Their hope is that as they foster awareness they also offer support for the mother-in-law who may be struggling to find ways to keep communication open, find boundaries that work and honor her commitment to family without appearing overbearing.
Contained in each chapter are the true accounts of practiced relationship approaches; models that are healthy and work well, and those that have had tragic results. Slaughter and Kubelin point out constructive and destructive behaviors, so learning will occur and healing is possible. The pain that comes from broken familial ties—when communication is severed—produces alienation and isolation and is certainly worth every effort to avoid. Life as a Mother-in-Law explains with compassion, how to make the most of changing relationships and how to employ the crucial act of letting go.
