Margie Slaughter, Crossroads Counseling Services LLC

10/22/2025

Studies have revealed that every time you express gratitude your brain literally physically rewires itself making you naturally more positive and resilient. Gratitude activates key areas of the brain like the prefrontal cortex, which regulates emotions and decision-making. This process increases “feel good” neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, while decreasing stress hormones like cortisol. Over time, this creates and strengthens neural pathways associated with positive emotions and makes it easier to notice and appreciate good experiences.

To elaborate:

📑Activates reward and emotional centers: Gratitude stimulates the prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and ventral striatum, which are critical for emotional regulation and mental well-being.

📑Increases feel-good chemicals: Gratitude stimulates the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, which lead to feelings of happiness, pleasure and contentment.

📑Regulates stress hormones: Regular gratitude has been shown to lower cortisol (stress hormone) levels.

📑Strengthens positive neural pathways: By consistently focusing on what you are thankful for, you strengthen the neural connections related to positive emotions and reframe your thinking. This makes it easier to experience positive feelings in the future.

📑Weakens negative pathways: Over time, this process can diminish the prominence of negative thoughts, as the brain shifts its focus from potential threats or past regrets to positive experiences.

By rewiring your brain and creating a more positive internal dialogue you not only improve mental health but also your actual physical health! Many people do not realize that a negative internal dialogue, continuous negative thoughts and anger are EXTREMELY harmful to your mental and physical health - actually able to even trigger autoimmune conditions.

SOURCE: https://positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude

See also: Laura I Hazlett et al. Brain Behav Immun. 2021 Jul.

10/20/2025

Most losses come in layers.

There’s the actual loss — the person, the relationship, the dream.

And then there’s what that loss *represents*: rejection, failure, betrayal, or the unknown future you never planned for.

That’s why grief lingers even when we think we should be “over it.”

You’re not just missing what you lost — you’re mourning the story you thought you were living.

Remember this story about loss from ?
For a refresher, pick up your copy ➡️ amzn.to/3404926

10/16/2025

What’s the most challenging “ation?”

Shel Silverstein ❤️❤️
(Pinterest)

10/09/2025

10/08/2025

A fascinating discovery in neuroscience reveals that motivation often follows effort, rather than preceding it. Researchers have found that the brain releases dopamine—the “feel-good” neurotransmitter after we take action, creating a reward cycle that fuels even greater drive and productivity.

Contrary to common belief, waiting for motivation before starting a task may not be the most effective strategy. Instead, taking small steps or initiating action triggers a release of dopamine, which signals the brain that progress has been made. This chemical reinforcement enhances mood, focus, and persistence, making it easier to continue pursuing goals.

The process works as a feedback loop. Action leads to dopamine release, dopamine increases motivation, and increased motivation encourages further action. This reward cycle can be leveraged to build habits, maintain consistency, and achieve long-term objectives. Neuroscientists note that even minor accomplishments—like completing a single task or making measurable progress—can activate this system and set off a chain reaction of sustained motivation.

Understanding this mechanism has practical implications for work, education, and personal development. Instead of waiting to “feel motivated,” individuals can prioritize taking action, knowing that the brain will respond positively once movement begins. Structured routines, goal setting, and breaking tasks into manageable steps can maximize dopamine-driven motivation.

This research challenges the traditional approach to productivity and highlights the brain’s natural ability to reward effort. By starting first and trusting the process, anyone can harness this neurochemical cycle to boost drive, overcome procrastination, and maintain momentum toward achieving their goals.

In essence, the brain teaches a simple principle: motivation is earned through action, not anticipated beforehand. Take action, experience the reward, and let your drive grow naturally from there.

09/18/2025

Robert Redford grew up with mild polio, struggled in school and felt like an outsider.

Teachers thought he wasn’t smart enough, and classmates teased him.

After working odd jobs and getting expelled from college for heavy drinking and poor academic performance, he turned to art and acting.

His start was humble.

He got small parts on Broadway, guest spots on TV shows, and a few film roles.

It wasn't instant fame, but he kept showing up, taking whatever role he could, hoping people would take notice.

His breakthrough came alongside Paul Newman in 1969 with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

The movie turned him into a bankable star and in the 1970s, he was consistently ranked among the top 5 box office draws in America.

He later founded the Sundance Institute in 1981 with $500,000 of his own money, giving unknown filmmakers a chance to tell their stories.

As Redford said, “The measure of our success will be the condition on which we leave the world for the next generation.”

From a boy labeled ‘slow’ to one of Hollywood’s greatest actors and directors, Robert Redford rose to the top and used his success to open doors for others.

The labels others put on you don’t decide your future, you do.

09/12/2025

“‘Legacy’ is a word that wears a cape; ‘maintenance’ wears sweatpants and gets things done.”

My journal entry on doors that close, work that counts, and the legacy of everyday living.

09/10/2025

Makes sense, whether placing it under the armpit or holding it to your face or neck…

Studies have revealed that placing a cold pack under your armpit during feelings of sudden anxiety can help relieve that anxiety in seconds by stimulating the vagus nerve and reducing sympathetic nervous system arousal.

The vagus nerve is a major component of the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps regulate bodily functions like heart rate, digestion, and breathing.

The sympathetic nervous system, on the other hand, is responsible for the “fight or flight or freeze” response, preparing the body for stress.

Cold exposure, even something as small as placing a cold pack directly under the armpit, activates the vagus nerve through a phenomenon called the diving reflex. This reflex is a physiological response to cold water immersion, causing a shift in the autonomic nervous system towards a more relaxed state.

When a cold pack is applied to the armpit, it stimulates nerve endings near major blood vessels and nerves, including those connected to the vagus nerve. This stimulation activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which leads to a decrease in heart rate, blood pressure and overall arousal.

PMID: 30684416

09/10/2025

~ Lulu

09/07/2025

Going to therapy is a way to have a level of support in your life not offered in other relationships.