I understand sensitive brains and nervous systems
...intimately.
I understand from 3 very different perspectives.
Each of them brings a valuable piece to the puzzle of how to find lasting freedom from repetitive behaviors.
1) My Personal Perspective
When it comes to body-focused repetitive behaviors, I’m a reluctant hat-trick. I started pulling my hair when I was 9 years old in Mrs. Bennett’s 4th grade class. I started biting my nails, the skin around them, and the inside of my cheeks a bit later when I was about 12. I actually can’t remember when I started picking my skin. It runs in my extended family and I honestly didn’t know it was a problem until I went to kindergarten and realized that everyone didn’t pick their skin and didn't let their scabs heal! I was a very sensitive kid and I desperately hid both my behaviors and my sensitivity behind an impressive veil of perfectionism.
There’s lots I could tell you about what it’s like living with a sensitive nervous system, but I know the big question most people want to ask is:
How did you regrow your hair, heal your skin, and revive your nails?
The answer in short is…
I listened.
I listened to what my body was desperately trying to tell me. I eliminated the things in my life that were irritating my brain and nervous system, found things to nourish me, and learned how to better support myself when I was stressed. And then most importantly, I built a daily practice around these things to create a framework of support so I didn’t have to worry about forgetting to do the things that help me the most.
But I didn't do it alone. I had some very special people who helped me find more freedom. And this wisdom came from a very surprising place! I learned my biggest insights from working with kids with Autism. You can learn more about them here.
2) My Practitioner Perspective
I'm a teacher down to my bones. There's nothing I enjoy more than learning something new and then sharing it with others. I’ve spent my career studying the brain and nervous system, specifically highly sensitive ones. Over the last 18 years I’ve worked with over 2,400 patients with highly sensitive nervous systems including individuals challenged with Autism, ADHD, anxiety, auto-immune disorders, body-focused repetitive behaviors, OCD, and addiction.
My area of expertise is natural medicine. I earned my Natural Science degree from the College of Saint Benedict and went on to receive my Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Northwestern Health Sciences University. Because of the challenging and genetic nature of the diagnoses that many of my patients present with, I've had to look beyond conventional natural therapies to get to the root of what's behind these difficult conditions.
As a result, my post-doctorate focus has been in the field of epigenetics.
Epigenetics, in a nutshell, is the study of how you can influence the expression of your genes. Your genes can be switched on or they can be turned off, and at any given time, only about 5% of your genes are impacting your health. Your lifestyle choices play a huge role in deciding which genes express and which ones stay silent. In other words, you have a lot of control over your genetic light switches!
3) My Parenting Perspective
My third perspective is that of a parent who has a child with body-focused repetitive behaviors. My youngest daughter is highly sensitive like me and has struggled with body-focused repetitive behaviors.
You'd think that having lived with these behaviors myself and intimately knowing what it's like to be highly sensitive, I would have had this parenting thing all figured out. Nope! My daughter has no problem reminding me that lots of the things that I think I'm doing to support her drive her absolutely crazy! She's also helped me tremendously in making sure my approach is simple and practical enough for a teenager's schedule.
I've learned so much from listening to parents over the years and noticing what does and doesn't work in providing support for individuals with these behaviors. In my practice, I actually insist on seeing both children and their loved ones because setting up a skillful support structure is a vital component of getting results and maintaining them.
And No...
We don't spend all our days smiling at each other making lemonade in the kitchen. There's at least a little sass every day when my daughter reminds me that I'm not cool anymore, that "the last thing she wants to do" is help me in the garden, and that my fashion is hopeless. Ahh...the joys of motherhood. Who am I kidding...I wouldn't trade it for anything!
I know how hard it is to take the first step.
I'll be there with you, every step of the way.