Yahoo News Mama June Shannon's Daughters 'Had to Set Boundaries' with Her and Went to 'Therapy' Before Reaching Good Place (Exclusive)
Lauryn "Pumpkin" Efird tells PEOPLE she and her sisters wanted to "work through the issues instead of just bottling them back up"
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Mama June Shannon’s relationship with daughters Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson, Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird and Jessica "Chubbs" Shannon hasn’t always been easy.
While the family finds themselves in a better spot today, it's different than what plays out on Mama June: From Hot to Not, which shows June, 43, and her daughters struggling to get along.
“For us, getting to that place took a lot of time and took a lot of effort,” Lauryn, 23, tells PEOPLE ahead of Mama June: From Hot to Not’s season 6 finale. “We had to set boundaries in between that time and we had to go to therapy and really, really work through the issues instead of just bottling them back up.”
Lauryn and her husband Josh becoming Alana’s guardians also contributed to some of the tension.
“It's been tough to navigate because, of course me, and Josh have four kids of our own and we're also trying to send Alana off to college now,” Lauryn says. “And even before then, we were trying to get Alana to graduate and we were trying to learn how to manage five kids under five and also a high school graduate. That was always very, very complicated for me and Josh to figure out.”
Lauryn says June’s ex, Mike “Sugar Bear” Thompson, hasn’t been involved “at all” with raising daughter Alana, 17, but June has been “so much better.”
“He wasn't even at Alana's graduation. I don't believe that Alana has even spoke to him in even the last year,” Lauryn claims. “We literally have no type of communication. After Alana's graduation, he took two weeks to reach out and say congratulations. With mama, she's actually been a part of the graduating process with Alana, which you guys will see.”
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After feeling like she took on a motherly role for so long, Lauryn feels happy to have her mom back.
“It is definitely a huge relief having mama back,” she says. “I know for a long time I have been the mom, so it's nice to give that role back to mama. I feel like it's a relief for me because I don't have as much on my plate with already raising five kids.”
The changes June made in her life allowed Lauryn and her sisters to feel comfortable attending June’s wedding to Justin Stroud. June and Justin tied the knot in a courthouse in March 2022, but held a bigger celebration in Panama City, Florida in February.
“Throughout the season I talk a lot about actions speak louder than words, and this time there was a lot more actions than words with her,” Lauryn says. “She started coming around more. She started being there for Alana and my kids and Jessica. It just felt like we owed that to her, showing up and being a part of that big day, especially since we weren't a part of them actually being married at the courthouse.”
Having each other to lean on has always helped the sisters push through the drama.
"We always, all three lean, on each other," Alana, who has a fourth sister named Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell, tells PEOPLE. "When my mama was bad in her addiction, it was really only us three. So having us three is definitely very good because we know for a fact that ain't nobody going to go run and spread our business with us three because literally, it's just us three."
Alana calls her sisters “a good support team,” adding, "With us three, I think we'll be okay."
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The season 6 finale of Mama June: From Not to Hot aired Friday on WE tv.
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