A traumatic event is an incident that causes physical, emotional, spiritual, or psychological harm. Trauma can happen after you experience an event or events that affect you physically or emotionally. Trauma can have lasting effects on your mental, physical, and emotional health. Experiencing trauma puts people at risk of developing mental health conditions, such as: Anxiety, depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and even chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, multiple chemical sensitivities, and other conditions.  Trauma can also result from world events such as pandemics, and political actions.  Symptoms of Trauma Shock, denial, or disbelief. Confusion, difficulty concentrating. Anger, irritability, mood swings. Anxiety and fear. Guilt, shame, self-blame. Withdrawing from others. Feeling sad or hopeless. Feeling disconnected or numb. 

START UP!™ is a Neurodevelopmental Art Therapy model which uses the brains’ integrative capacity to rewire your brain from trauma.  Your brain is capable of creating new neural pathways (neurogenesis) which were damaged in the traumatic experience/experiences. Through rewiring your brain you will decrease the maladapted stress response within the limbic system. You may find that other issues you thought were unrelated to trauma may clear as well.   See the Issues START UP! Treats (add link) for more information.  

START UP!™ uses a holistic approach, utilizing the integrative capacity of the both sides of the brain, from side to side, and bottom to top, addressing limbic system impairment, while ensuring optimal functioning in the all four functioning levels of the brain.  It is more than talk therapy, which only engages the left brain, whereas Art Therapy engages both left and right brains, allowing for an integration and rewiring of neural circuitry to allow your brain to function optimally again (neuroplasticity). START UP!™  creates structural and functional changes in ALL parts of the brain, no matter your race, gender, etc.  The START UP!™  Program is evidence-based with outcome research in neuroscience,  demonstrating its efficacy and power to strengthen and rewire the brain from trauma. Art Therapy is not new in the psychology profession, but it is quickly gaining recognition from the neuroscience field as a new paradigm in health and healing.   

Depending on age (as children have more pliable neuroplasticity than adults), severity of trauma, and how long you have suffered from symptoms, as well as how devoted you are to practicing the START UP!™ practices, tools and guidelines, in your session and outside of sessions.  Some people might start to see positive changes very quickly after they begin the therapy process, while it may take more time for others. Children tend to have quicker results due to their pliable neuroplasticity, but this does not mean you will not see quick results if you are not a child. We cannot expect results overnight and it is not useful to put a timeline on one’s healing process as this can create anxiety and perpetuate the maladapted stress response.  Just know that with commitment and dedication, you are rewiring your brain, and your symptoms will begin to dissipate and disappear.   

The START UP!™  Program’s successful outcome research is based on children’s symptom reduction after completing The START UP!™  Program sessions twice weekly, however you can do the sessions as many times as you wish before moving on to the next module, because repetition builds and strengthens neural pathways.  Your commitment and dedication, and your choice to implement suggested START UP!™ tools outside of the sessions may require more of your time, but you may see a reduction of symptoms sooner than you would if you only do this program once or twice per week. 

Many of our clients have been predominantly Native American, as well as, of underserved cultures, which means that we prioritize cultural awareness, sensitivity, and cultural competence at START UP!™.  We acknowledge and embrace such communities and deeply understand the history of racism and colonization, and  the effects of Historical Trauma and its ability to form the cognitive process; how groups of people think and behave.  Art Therapy is a culturally competent healing modality which creates cultural continuity, shown to be the most effective in treating trauma in Native American and other cultures.  Though circular thinking and linear thinking may be different, neuroplasticity still operates in the same way in all brains, allowing the brain to regenerate and rewire from trauma no matter how old the trauma is.  It can be trauma stored within the genetic markers from colonization (historical trauma), or it can be a recent trauma; START UP!™ utilizes guided and self-directed neuroplasticity to heal  and rewire the brain.  This healing can change the genetic markers for trauma within the DNA to heal holistically.   START UP!™ understands that the people we serve practice a wide variety of spiritual paths and religions. We understand how important these practices are, and have incorporated this into our program so each individual has the opportunity to independently incorporate their own values and spiritual/religious beliefs into their therapy,  and are openly welcomed encouraged to do so.