How you can get along with your family during the Thanksgiving holiday
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- In many households, tomorrow may be the one time per year that everyone in the family is under the same roof.
If everyone gets along and can't wait to be together, that's great -- but often, there's a fly in the gravy, someone that doesn't quite fit. So what do you do?
KDKA's John Shumway is here to help.
First and foremost, there is nothing wrong with you if someone at your gathering makes you cringe.
"Everyone has that scenario where there are loved ones where there are family members that you don't love," PennWest California assistant professor and psychologist Dr. Reuben Brock said. "You know, you don't quite like, right? You might love them, but you don't necessarily like them."
Dr. Brock says not to step on the conversational landmines like politics, religion, or the fight that you had with someone last year.
If the person really raises the hair on the back of your neck, Dr. Brock says that you should maybe pretend that they're not there or accept that you don't need to resolve your issues in order to pass food to and from one another.
In fact, Dr. Brock says that trying to resolve the issue is probably a mistake.
"For most people, it's not going to be helpful to say 'Let's hash it out today,'" Dr. Brock said. "You know, in between the prayer and dessert, that's probably not going to happen."
If mom or grandma is pushing for everyone to get along, let them down gently.
"We can be nice to each other and we can be kind and not throw the mashed potatoes at each other," Dr. Brock said. "But it may very well not be feasible for us to ever kind of, you know, be in the backyard tossing the ball again, and that's okay."
It can really blow up into something out of control if someone tries to force it, but this is family. There's so much guilt that comes with the idea that we don't like each other.
Dr. Brock says there should be no guilt. You're human and not all humans mix -- and in that case, you need to figure out how to peacefully coexist.
