Mama June Says She Never Saw Her Kids As Paycheck Despite Daughter's Claim

Mama June says she never saw her kids as just a means to make money ... this despite her daughter Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson claiming her love was all about cash in the upcoming  "I Was Honey Boo Boo" Lifetime biopic.

If you haven't seen the trailer ... the movie's a biopic, but Thompson really appears in the clip -- making comments in between some of the sequences from the film.

At one point, she says "I wanted Mama, but her love was only transactional."

Mama June -- real name June Shannon -- tells TMZ she never looked at her children "as a paycheck" or anything transactional ... but admits she grew up feeling like giving gifts was the way to one's heart.

She explains, "The way that I was brought up is showing your love with money or an item and that’s just the way that it had always been. So my love language was always to buy people things or to get my kids' attention for a long time, I would give them money or I would give them something."

MJ even flips the script on Honey Boo Boo -- claiming she felt like an ATM for a long time ... both at home and in her romantic and professional relationships.

However, she says that ship has sailed -- she no longer seeks validation through the act of giving ... and has even told her family she wants nothing to do with anyone if they see her as a piggy bank. She also says she's "cut off a lot of people throughout the years" because they saw her as their personal wallet.

Mama June tells TMZ she's worked hard on herself over the last several years, including addressing her cocaine addiction.

As for her relationship with Alana -- who previously accused her of stealing the money she was earned while working as a child star -- she notes they will "never be close" like they were a decade ago due to everything they've been through ... but adds her mama is always there for her if she needs it.