A Mental Makeover

I was a self help junkie. 
I read hundreds of books in an effort to better myself. 
I was on the hunt for what was wrong in my life and the answer to fix it. 

The issue?? None of the self help books, the motivational conferences, the $9 to $999 downloadable courses, or 5 steps to success workshops were getting to the ROOT cause: The Brain. 

I am busting myths in this episode starting with: Knowledge is NOT power. 
Willpower is the number one thing I hear is a problem, and that leads to guilt about not having what is needed to make a change. 

Here's how "self help" works:
We have years and years of compounded thoughts. 
We spend 1 minute, 1 hour, 1 day, submerged into a new idea. 
Then, we expect that tiny new thought to over ride our years and years of previous thoughts. See how that doesn't quite stick??

There IS a way to have the self help books help you, but it begins deep in the brain with a foundational change and I am showing you the 3 ways to make that happen. 

PS. I mention seasons of changes in this episode and reference my episode on change, check out my episode here:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5naQzrndvzESMsHZu7YN3h?si=58a07c7305044fba

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Divorce. 
Job Shifts. 
Relocating. 
Body Changes. 

I think it’s safe to say that MOST people don’t love change and especially don’t love being stuck in transition. A new job, a new town, a new school, there is pain where there is transition, and I am going to show you just what transition does to your brain so that together, we can make them a little easier. 

The fear in transition comes from the lies we tell ourselves:

“It is never going to get better.”

“It was the best is ever was, the way it was before.”

“It can’t ever be as good.”

“My best days are behind me, and everything in front of me is going to be sad/bad/fill in the blank.”

 Whether you are dreading what’s next, or you are ready to hurry up and get to the next phase, these feelings and thoughts we have create during transitional time, actually wire our brains to produces chemicals that continue to make us sad and STUCK in the bad. 

So what do we do? I’m telling you just how to treat transitions! 

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Did you know that JOY is fleeting? 
It doesn't stick. 
We can feel joy in a moment, but soon after, it fades away! 

Do you know why?? 
Because joy is not a THREAT to our survival so it doesn't stay around like danger, hurt, and worry. Your brain holds onto the THREATS. Your brain thinks that reminding you what hurt or caused you danger, will in turn protect you from having it happen again. 

So how do we keep the joy alive and hold onto those moments??
I am showing you HOW in this episode by sharing my top 10 moments of the summer! 

From my "me-cation" to my implant removal, to feeding an alligator, to spending quality time with my kids, these 10 moments of joy are ones I am training myself to hold onto. 

Listen to my top 10 moments then make a note of my FOUR tips to make your own list today to hold on to joy. 


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We’re getting into a personal experience today… 

Introducing The Thought Thief. 
Here’s my question: Are you stealing from yourself?

Your brain might be stealing your joy, your happiness, and your well being just from the thoughts inside your head.

In this episode, we will take a quick inventory of thoughts and identify how they may be the silent thieves of our good feelings. 

Maybe you have heard or even SAID this very common phrase: ‘If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all…’

LIE. 

Your brain, is always listening, not just to your words, but to your thoughts too. 
Especially the thoughts you have about yourself and I want to show you how to trick the brain into THINKING the nice things not just saying them. 


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Back to school season…

This episode is for the caregivers, the parents, the teachers, the adults in a child’s life because we are talking about how to handle going back to school for the first time in nearly 3 years. 

Together we cover how to help your children navigate this stressful time of the year. Kids, pre teens, even teens, don’t have the mental wiring systems to express the levels of stress or anxiety they are feeling about going back to school. So what do they do when they don’t know what to say, they say nothing at all.
How do you read the silence? 
How do you know how to help?
How do you support them? 
Let’s dive into it together in this episode. 


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Brains and Bathingsuits….

In the swings of menopause 

Fresh off removing my breast implants 

I am over 50 

On a beach, surrounded by babes in bikinis…

Sounds like a dream summer day, right? HA. 

How many of you have experienced feeling avoidance, fear, or anxiety around being in a bathing suit in the summer?

This episode is to address just how one (little) article of clothing, and cause a big impact on the brain. 

Our 2nd episode of In Her Shoes is here and I am helping you do a quick confidence check. 

I am Staci Danford, an educational neuroscientist with another episode of A Mental Makeover here to remind you that the jiggle does not have to impact the joy. Can’t wait for you to listen. 

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Today's topic is going into the truth bombs of my most recent surgey:
Breast Implant Removal

There is a huge surge of people who are having their implants removed, also known as an explant surgery. So many of the small symptoms I was having are related to breast implant illness. 

Why did I get implants?
What is breast implant illness?
What were my symptoms?
How was it impacting my brain? Before and after the surgeries??

I am answering it all this week. No questions are off limits. 
Let's take a journey back to 1999.... 

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"I wish I had more confidence..."
"How do they have so much confidence???"
"Where do they get that kind of self assurance?"

I used to think confidence was something you were just born with. 
I used to think it could come from your upbringing, or life experiences. 
I used to think you either had it or you don't. 

The truth is, neuroscience now knows confidence is a SKILL. 
And the best news ever? You can learn it, at any age, at any time, in any circumstance!

In hopes of bringing you the tools you need to start growing that self confidence skill, I am combining my coaching, training, and mindfulness techniques to you in this episode while bringing awareness to the FOUR confidence killers you need to know about! 

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After spending a decade in the “brain space” I am coming to you in the podcasting space! Welcome to A Mental Makeover, where we have a little bit of neuroscience, a little bit of a joy, and a whole lot of fun. 

In hopes of bringing you the tools you need to boost your self esteem, I am combining my coaching, training, and mindfulness techniques to you in this episode! 

I am busting myths and spilling secrets on all things self esteem, including a daily habit you can take on to improve how you see YOU. 

So what is self esteem? How do you grow it? This is a conversation I want to have with you so that YOU can learn how to have better conversations with yourself, even if it’s tough. Let’s talk about it. 

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