Everybody Hates Chris star Tichina Arnold and her teen daughter Alijah Kai have an unbreakable bond, with an open line of communication between the pair, feelings are addressed and issues get straightened out with the mother-daughter duo learning from each other and getting to know each other better. This is in contrast to how Arnold was brought up with her mum.
The 52-year-old Hollywood actress and her 17-year-old daughter, sitting with ESSENCE Wellness House Panel called “Breaking Intergenerational Patterns” dished on their relationship.
“[I] never had mental health conversations with my mother,” Tichina shared. “That was the era where we didn’t really discuss certain things,” Arnold explained. “Alijah and I have a lot more discussions,” the celebrity mom revealed. “She forces me actually to have more discussions.”
Alijah who is building up her shine in the spotlight as a model and a singer, explaining, said her mom is consciously making efforts to break through generational barriers to establish their relationship:
“She has a harder time expressing herself due to the fact that back then she wasn’t able to really talk about her mental health. “But because I take mental health into really deep consideration … I love to kind of force her to talk to me and force her to open up with me and force her to feel what I’m feeling,” Alijah shared.
Kai a firm believer that knowledge can be exchanged regardless of age told the panel. “Your kids can teach you a lot as well. You can learn from your kids just as much as they learn from you,” Alijah shared. “Just because we walk on two different paths doesn’t mean we can’t walk beside each other.”
Tichina agreed. “Being a mom is not perfect,” the actress revealed. “Every day is just a different situation,” Arnold added. “As long as I am her mother I’m going to be learning how to be a mother until the day I die.”
Alijah Kai is Tichina Arnold’s daughter with Carvin Haggins.
