A Positive Start CIC

05/06/2026

05/06/2026

If you don't love yourself, you'll always be chasing after people who don't love you either. -Mandy Hale

05/06/2026

This is why we do the work.

Every woman who heals becomes a safer place for someone else to land, for her children, her community, the stranger who finds her online at 3am and feels, for the first time in a long time, that someone understands. ꩜ Ella

05/06/2026

Not long now 🫶🏼
Come & Join us for a great weekend ..
-Learn more about our services
- Meet My Body is My Body founder Chrissy Sykes
- Enjoy an Ebike Ride with Teri Bikes
- Get creative with Instinctively Wild
- lots of fun activities for kids & the whole family

Enjoy the natural beauty of Harestanes & community

Grab a free ticket for a cuppa & a cookie on arrival..

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-positive-start-cic-free-summer-solstice-woodland-wellbeing-open-weekend-tickets-1989075787224?utm_experiment=test_share_listing&aff=ebdsshios&sg=c521149ca29f2de76f9806202b99918122593c938114b81d4fd4bb4a6f3b8ae6a2eeaa20a0e973c6b75c85626dd9e04eb3d0fc1ae58d53c59ac4263174436741cfc6a5dbdb81b4586ef33b5471

05/06/2026

Creating Safety …
Trauma Informed
Trigger recognition
Reassurance
Understanding
Safety
Truth

Why? Because 👇

04/06/2026

Manipulation isn't always about what is said.

Sometimes it's about what another person is led to believe is true.

We often think of manipulation as lying, but some of the most powerful forms of influence require no direct lies at all. They simply create a context that encourages a particular conclusion.

The real question isn't always:

"Did they tell the truth?"

Sometimes the more important question is:

"What understanding were they trying to create?"

Over the past few weeks, whilst juggling a business relocation, funding applications, client work, family life and dissertation deadlines, I found myself in a situation that left me reflecting deeply on perception, influence and informed consent.

As someone who teaches about coercion, grooming, manipulation and critical thinking through our STAND – Parents as Protectors programme, I was struck by how easily our understanding can be shaped by context, expectation, timing and carefully chosen language.

People don't simply hear words.

They hear meaning.

And meaning is filtered through what they already believe to be true.

What is the impact when that understanding turns out to be wrong?

Added stress.

Added anxiety.

Added financial pressure.

Hours spent trying to resolve a problem that never should have existed in the first place.

Being told you cannot cancel.

Being told you have no cooling-off period.

Being threatened with cancellation fees despite receiving no goods, no installation and no service.

Most importantly, having your ability to make an informed choice overridden by a perception that was created before you had all the facts.

That is what concerns me.

Not simply what was said, but the consequences that follow when people are encouraged to believe something that is not true.

In this blog, I explore a recent real-life experience that highlights how perception is formed, why transparency matters, and why "technically correct" isn't always the same as being genuinely clear.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

At what point does persuasion become manipulation?

https://apositivestart.org.uk/lived-experience-blog/when-does-persuasion-become-manipulation/

As many of you know, one of the topics I explore in our STAND – Parents as Protectors workshops is manipulation.