Kristi Sullivan says all you need to know about common holiday family dynamics is in the movie National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. “It has all of the elements: The pressure of putting on the perfect family holiday; feeling like you’ve overspent on gifts, entertaining, décor, and travel; personal space squeezed by guests crammed into your house; Cousin Eddie asking for money,” Sullivan says. “All of this stress leads to short tempers. Bringing up others’ financial shortcomings or needed life changes could be met with resistance. Be willing to listen to all sides of a story and make compromises.”
