Product Description
Guilt. Criticism. Control. Competition. Anger -Do these words reflect your relationship with your mother? -Can your mother make you feel guilty in thirty seconds or less? -Do you feel that whatever you do or say, you're still not good enough for her? -Does it feel like the woman who has known you the longest doesn't really know you at all? If so, you are most likely experiencing mama drama, the ongoing conflict with your mother that seems too complicated to fix. But Denise McGregor has solutions for turning a challenging relationship with Mother into one that is joyful, healthy, and loving. Written with humor and heart, Mama Drama will help you get past the blame and guilt, move on with your life, and redefine your relationship with the one person you thought you'd never understand--your mother.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 10 reviews)

disappointing by Theodora (greece)

2 Stars
January 11, 2009
I found this book very disappointing. It kept repeating that we should let things go, that we should reestablish a good relationship with our mother, with no guidance whatsoever. It either oversimplified things, or just said things like: after 20 years of work she had the relationship she wanted with her mother... To begin with I don't want the process to take 20 years, and second, what do you do? Women who buy books like this are looking for specifics, not anecdotes.

Mean and uninformed by Karin Lewicki (Los Angeles)

1 Stars
January 02, 2009
The book is written in a familiar conversational style that may be good for some readers, and has advice some readers may find useful. Basically, it seems, if your relationship with your mother is frustrating, aggravating, all that stuff in the title, but basically good, this book is for you. If your mother has ever significantly harmed you, do not get this book. (Unless you want to get it to light it on fire with friends, or something.) I can't really put this in strong enough terms - if your mother has a personality disorder of any kind, if she's molested you or allowed other people to do so, if she has any kind of pronounced pattern of abuse or manipulation, you might be far better off with Victoria Secunda's "When You and Your Mother Can't Be Friends," which is far more compassionate, reasonable, empathetic, and informed. What McGregor has to tell you about your mother is basically what someone might have told you in the 1880s if you were beaten by your spouse. That you deserved t, basically, and that the person who beat you had your best interests at heart, and only did it because you made them, and so on. McGregor would perhaps have been wiser to limit the reach of her book to people whose relationships with their mothers had been difficult, but not included psychological disturbance or violence. She doesn't, and in a few short paragraphs dispatches the concerns of these people she seems to know very little about. Her advice for people who have been the victims of abuse: "Your mother only wants the best for you!" She quotes a woman convicted of killing her children who wrote Erma Bombeck a fan letter. In the letter the woman says that Bombeck's book was so good, if only she'd read it earlier she might not have killed her kids. McGregor presents this as evidence that, I guess, mothers are basically innocent of any crimes against their children, even when they killed them. For people who have been in dangerous situations with their mothers, well, it's not just that it's bad counseling, it's also bad to know that someone espousing this stuff can be called a professional, given endorsements, praised, etc. Use the book for what you can if you have to, but there are a lot of better things out there.

Hit the Nail on the Head by Tiffany J. Bailey

5 Stars
January 23, 2008
I was a little unsure about this book after reading the first 40 pages or so, and then I was shocked and so thankful for all the amazing and wonderful insight this book has to offer. It really helped me see my mother (and father) in a different, much more positive light. I looked through at least 50 books until I finally came upon this one. It is a fantastic book for anyone who has dealt with guilt, control, critical behavior, neediness from their parent. I loved this book and I am so glad I found it.

You Mean I'm Not Crazy! by Susan Savelli (Richmond, Texas USA)

5 Stars
April 11, 2007
This book was so helpful that I passed it on to a friend. I have actually used advice suggested by the author and my life with my mom has improved significantly. It truly helped in that my mother has to break the apron strings and I have to take the responsiblity to grow up. If nothing else, this book puts boundaries in perspective. I am normally reserved about self-help books, but as a practicing mental health professional, this one will become one of my more recommended to clients.

helpful book by merlot (Texas)

5 Stars
September 28, 2006
I'm writing a review even though I haven't completely finished reading the book in case my review helps someone else. This book is very helpful. The author doesn't mention a lot of pscyhological terms but rather tries to help you understand why you mother is doing what she is doing and provides you with tips on how to balance the relationship so you are not constantly stressed and discouraged. She encourages you not to "divorce" your mom like some would say but tells you to think about what you want out of the relationship and then work to that goal, often by finding some common ground that you can stand on to related to your mother. I'm sort of in the midst of some major issues with my mother (again) and the one thing I am struggling with are feeling of guilt and isolation and the "why me" mindset as it relates to my mother. Wondering why I can't have a good relationship with my mother like I see other women have with their mothers. I feel further isolated since I don't have a sister or an aunt and my grandmother has passed so there's not even another woman in my family that I can share my feelings with to help me feel better. This book provides lots of examples that help you realize you are not alone and that it is possible to not be super close to your mother and still be a good person. There is one thing I struggled with that the author says. She says that your mother isn't out to hurt you and she even pointed to examples of child abuse and extreme cases where mothers have killed their children and she still says that those mothers weren't out to hurt their children and that their actions were about their issues and so forth (please read the book for the exact wording on this topic). Anyway I disagreed with that because I think sometimes mothers can wish to hurt their children, consiously and unconsciously I think sometimes mothers are jealous, resentful, unhappy with their own lives and just mean and that they do want to hurt their children. Do I think they may regret it after the fallout of their actions? Yes. Do I think they also have times or moments where they love their children? Yes. But I just felt like when the author said they don't want to hurt you it was almost excusing the behavior and saying that your mother really loves you no matter what and that any bad thing is really not to hurt you and I just don't think I believe that...but that is my opinion. Let me say again that the book is wonderful and offers great insight in dealing with a problem that can make you feel very sad and lonely. It's worth it if you are having an issue...perhaps you can find some peace in the pages of this book.

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