Starting With You LLC

10/08/2025

Demand avoidant children aren't really avoiding demands.
That's one of the biggest mistakes that parents make when trying to help their children. It looks like they are avoiding demands, it's true. And reducing demands can often help.
But really demand avoidant children are avoiding the emotional response which follows a demand. The spike of anxiety. The feeling that they must be under threat. Those feelings are horrible and they want to get rid of them.
They want that feeling to go away as soon as possible and so they avoid. Those feelings are so intense that it feels like there's no way out except to avoid.
The problem is that the more they avoid, the worse those feelings can get. Because when you are afraid of your feelings, they start to feel like a threat themselves. Very quickly, everyone explodes.
Dr. Naomi Fisher

09/05/2025

Recent scientific studies show that isolation has a profound effect on our brain, literally causing it to shrink. The MRI scans of isolated individuals reveal a significant reduction in brain activity and volume. This emphasizes the profound impact that social connection has on our mental well-being. Humans are social creatures, and our brains thrive on interaction and communication with others.

As we experience more isolation, especially in modern times, our brains are left with fewer stimuli, which leads to cognitive decline. Social connections not only keep our minds sharp but also provide emotional support, which is essential for mental health. The data suggests that long-term isolation can lead to long-term mental and emotional struggles. It’s an urgent reminder to prioritize our relationships and engage with the world around us.

Given these findings, it's clear that our mental health is deeply connected to our ability to socialize and share experiences. Whether it's spending time with loved ones or engaging in community, each connection helps to protect our brain’s integrity and functioning. Connection is key to both mental and physical well-being, reminding us how important it is to foster relationships in our increasingly connected yet disconnected world. 🧠💬

09/03/2025

🧠 When home feels like a battlefield, the brain responds the same way war does.

Groundbreaking research from University College London and the Anna Freud Centre reveals that children exposed to family violence develop brain activity patterns strikingly similar to combat veterans.

Using functional MRI scans, researchers found that maltreated children show heightened responses in the amygdala and anterior insula—regions that detect and process threats—when viewing angry faces. These same regions are hyperactive in soldiers who’ve experienced combat, suggesting that repeated exposure to violence literally rewires a child’s emotional circuitry for hyper-vigilance.

While this adaptation may help children sense danger in the short term, it also primes the brain for anxiety disorders and long-term mental health struggles. Importantly, none of the children in the study had psychiatric diagnoses, highlighting how invisible these neural changes can be.

As Professor Peter Fonagy emphasized, protecting children from violence is not only a moral responsibility but also a scientific necessity—since the scars it leaves on the brain can endure for a lifetime.

Source: McCrory, E., et al. (2011). Maltreated children show same pattern of brain activity as combat soldiers. Current Biology.

08/28/2025

The vagus nerve is a primary carrier of information describing the state of the body to the brain, and transmitting information from the brain back to the body. It’s a feedback mechanism which is responsible for maintaining homeostasis for many of our vital organs and brain/body functions. Research over the past few decades shows that the vagus plays a key role in managing our levels of stress as well as our body’s inflammation; in this age of stress- and inflammation-related disease, it is perhaps the most important nerve in the body for us to be paying attention to.

Come learn more about the vagus nerve on our website, and register for the 2025 PVI International Gathering, The Vagus Nerve: A Path to Wellness, happening this fall, Oct 31-Nov 2, live in-person and online.
Tickets are still available!
➡️ www.polyvagal.org/vagusnerve

08/20/2024

I am so excited to support this event by doing Accudetox/Acuwellness for part of the afternoon.

Join us for whole-person healing for clinician survivors of client su***de next month! Calm your nervous system, restore, and connect with other clinicians who understand the impact of this life-altering event through vicarious healing! [https://savinglivesseries.mykajabi.com/clinician-healing-survivor](https://savinglivesseries.mykajabi.com/clinician-healing-survivor)

04/20/2024

Tomorrow is the day I am so excited to share this with you all. Michelle Miles

04/16/2024

Hey local friends and family this weekend I get to take a training that I have wanted for a couple years. If you want to come experience why and help me learn please come to the free times this coming Saturday and Sunday.

03/25/2024

Graphic credit:

03/21/2024

are the nation’s largest group of mental health services providers!
Find more facts about social workers here: https://socialworkers.org/News/Facts/Social-Workers

03/20/2024

Holly 🦅

01/23/2023

Such truth!!!

Via Shelly Robinson - Raising Yourself ❤️