Welcome. I'm Kevin Miller. This is a podcast about how we make meaning of our lives and experience

the miracle of living. In this episode, discovering a more authentic self when we can't discount the

influence of our upbringing. So I never wanted to give much credit to genetics or my upbringing.

I mean, for the good stuff, sure. But overall, I wanted to feel and really did like I'm my own

person. Until sometime in my 40s, when I realized I kept repeating some patterns that weren't

helping me and started looking back.

Today, I really amazed myself at the impact our upbringing and our family has on us,

maybe more so as I have now had so many kids and I see them as well.

You know, for better or worse, you know, we want to be our authentic selves. And I wonder how

authentic we can ever really be. So, of course, I pursued an expert. My guest and guide on this

subject is Vienna Farron. So she's got a book called The Origins of You,

how breaking family patterns can liberate the way we live and love. Vienna has been posting

these insights from thousands of her own patient encounters on Instagram. She's got over 700,000

followers tuning in to try to find

their more authentic selves. So Vienna, she's a licensed marriage and family therapist. She's

one of New York City's most sought after relationship therapist. She's practiced therapy

for almost 20 years. She's the founder and owner of the group practiced

mindful marriage and family therapy. So Vienna has been featured in the economist,

Netflix, Vice, and Motherly. She's led workshops for Peloton and Netflix. And really,

I've seen Vienna become a therapist that so many other therapists look to for guidance.

So coming up, Vienna Furon, she is going to have an in-depth discussion with me as I really am grappling with and trying to figure out how do we deal with the impact of our origins, as she says,

and find the more authentic us.

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