The Little School of Big Change Real People, Real Change.

Change Stories

The Little School of Big Change has helped thousands of people find freedom from habits, anxiety, and so much more for nearly 5 years.

I’m so excited for you to hear from The Little School of Big Change graduates about their change experiences. I know that as you watch the replay, you’ll see how change is possible for anyone, no matter who you are, what you’re dealing with, or how long you’ve felt stuck.

In these videos below you’ll see that change is our nature. Health and thriving are our nature. Clearing up a few little misunderstandings makes way for our healthy, peaceful, habit-free nature to shine through.

Missy’s Change Story: Freedom from hives was just the beginning

Jessie’s Change Story: I don’t need to fix myself anymore

Shelly’s Change Story: Freedom from Over-reacting

Malene’s Change Story: Freedom from Binge-Eating

Phillip’s Change Story: I’ve never been happier in my life

Gina’s Change Story: Freedom from over-drinking

Patricia’s Change Story: Freedom from Anxiety

Melissa’s Change Story: Freedom from diet obsessions

Hear from other past students of The Little School of Big Change

Ready for Your Own Change?

Join The Little School of Big Change Self-Study Course to begin your journey to freedom from unwanted habits, anxiety and so much more.

What other Students in The Little School of Change Say…

“If you are looking for a life-altering answer to the question of why you haven’t been able to maintain a change of habit, you’ve found it. The Little School of Big Change is unlike any other program out there. Using a completely new approach that does not involve the use of willpower, Dr. Amy Johnson has created a curriculum that will TRULY set you free. I recommend getting started right away.” –Linda

“I’ve always loved how Amy shares this understanding of how human beings work. She has a real talent for talking about it in a way that’s so simple and easy to understand. If you are struggling in any way at all in your life, please enroll in the LSBC. You will uncover something that has the potential to change your life!” –Jo

“What has struck me about this method is that it’s not about working harder, figuring it out, or distracting myself from myself. It’s a natural returning to my original state of joy, wholeness, and wellbeing. What could be more simple and beautiful!” –Phyllis

“Despite being expoosed to this understanding from numerous books and lectures over the past few years, something about the way Amy describes it resonates with me like no other. As a result of how Amy explains the principles, I don’t obsessively weigh myself. When I do overeat, I know my thinking will settle and everything will be okay. I’m learning to take my thoughts less seriously. I’ve had some sudden unwelcome work anxiety that impacted my performance but because of this understanding I have been able to let the anxiety come and go without derailing my entire week. I must warn you; there is a lot to lose if you do this program – your anxiety, worry, stress, and bad habits. Be careful, you life will never look the same and you’ll be forever grateful. I promise. What have you got to lose? :)” –Anonymous

“It never gets old hearing that our experiences come from thought. Each lesson I listened to I heard something different. It touched other parts of my life that didn’t know this understanding existed. It am looking forward to the advanced curriculum! Thank you, Amy!!” –Anonymous

“The simplicity of these lessons makes me hopeful. I see that I don’t have to do a lot to let go of my habits.” – Eileen

“As a therapist for 25 years this was very refreshing. The repetition was mindful and I was glad I can revisit it any time!” – Sabrina

“I feel like a missing piece was finally brought forth.” –Heather

“The curriculum of the Little School of Big Change has made the information I learned from reading The Little Book of Big Change come alive inside me. It’s beautiful and gentle and so much easier than I ever imagined. I am so grateful for this course.” –Anonymous

“I feel calmer and more settled. I know something has changed but I don’t know what or how to explain it at the moment. The great thing is I’m feeling hopeful for the first time in a long time.” –Lynda

“This school is like a shot in the arm for unveiling insights- I am so astonished and in awe of what I continue to see everyday. There really is no end to the depth of what is possible for us to see. Saying that I am grateful is a massive, massive understatement! I never imagined…” –Amanda

“The core curriculum dramatically changed my thinking about my habits. I innocently started these habits. I was doing the best I could. Now I know better and can let the habits fall away.” –Barbara

“The Little School of Big Change showed me that by simply understanding how our human experience works–how my brain works–that I am and have always been habit free. Can I walk away from my habit in an instant? Yes. I walked away from a 25 year old habit. Amy changed my life. She can change yours too.” –Fernanda

“The approach that Amy teaches for breaking habits is unlike anything I’ve ever encountered before…and it’s amazing. The biggest shift for me, so far from the training, has been recognizing that my habit is a way of comforting myself, AND THAT’S OKAY. In fact, as Amy says, it’s a healthy response to stress and life. Where many of the other approaches to breaking my eating for comfort habit have felt judgey and blamey, Amy’s approach is the total opposite; kind, loving, gentle and compassionate. I am deeply grateful for this.” –Anonymous

“I have just finished the first part of this amazing course with Amy. I am so grateful I found her and just at the precise moment I needed somebody to guide me in the right direction to a more peaceful state of mind and a life with much more contentment I can see much more clearly now thanks to The Little School of Big Change. I highly recommend everybody to enroll in these courses…it is life changing, for sure.” -Rosa Maria

“Nothing to lose, everything to gain by opening your mind to this idea of 3 principles. Open it just a crack, and you may find that’s how the light gets in! I did and I am so grateful.” -Cheryl

“Amy has a gentle, simple and gracious way of helping us understand the principles. During this learning process I have been pleasantly surprised that when I live moment by moment, in the present and allow my thinking settle down… answers, peace and comfort show up without having to try and ”think” them into being. Thank you Amy for your generosity and insights!” -Tom

“In my past, I was that guy with 34 years of “Major Depression,” and all of the drugs, counseling, and cognitive therapy that goes along with it. Right now, I’m free of depression because of my understanding that I never had it to begin with. I was caught up in my own thinking, not knowing HOW my thinking works. Today I get to experience glimpses more often than not, of profound love, wisdom and clarity that is within me in any given moment, in the space between my thinking. I can’t thank you enough…but I’ll try!” -Dave

“I feel much less anxious and more positive about change. This is very sensible and lines up with other ideas I’ve explored. I look forward to seeing how this impacts my life in ways large and small.” -Anonymous

“I found a calm gentle place within myself I had never seen before. This has opened a door to seeing more.” -Anonymous

“Amy, Thank you for the way you “backed into” the Three Principles, starting with your books and now the online courses. Your use of metaphors are extremely helpful. While my normal tendency is to use my head intellectually, I’m taking my time with all of this, letting it just sink in and roll around in my heart. You’re a gifted teacher. My thanks.” -Anonymous

“I have started to think differently about how my thinking works. I never knew it was from the inside out. I am at the very beginning of the process but I am excited about learning more.” -Stephanie

“Amy explains her curriculum in a clear and progressive way. I have grown in my understanding my psychological functioning. This has resulted in living in a nicer feeling inside more of the time. Thank you Amy. Also, the insights my classmates shared were very helpful and encouraging.” -Chuck

“I have genuinely gained such comfort and hope from listening to Amy. The biggest impact for me is understanding that who I thought I was is not who I am , that person has been covered up with thoughts and feelings, behaviours, emotions and what I look forward to is finding out is who I really am.” -Anonymous

“This understanding has changed everything for me. To realize that I am always experiencing the effects of my own thinking is an incredible relief. Just reminding myself of that when I am scared or anxious, helps to bring me back to a sense of safety. And once I am back to a sense of safety, a whole new world arises all by itself, filled with possibilities and hope. That’s it – I move from hopelessness to hope, by simply remembering this understanding.” -David

“I feel like my thinking is changing in a way I never new it could. Changing from the inside out makes so much more sense than outside in. I love the community feedback and the videos breaking everything down so it is not overwhelming. I’m so excited to see what is next!” -Stephanie

“I love The Little School of Big Change! Dr Amy Johnson’s authenticity and wisdom speaks directly to your heart and points you gently in the direction of finding your own wisdom and peace of mind. I highly recommend The Little School to everybody.” -Anonymous

“To have this knowledge and information at my fingertips, at anytime is wonderful. This curriculum has opened my eyes to new possibilities and a future of freedom from my habit. This information is priceless, and I wish everyone could experience this amazing understanding. Thank you Amy for your commitment and love you have put into The Little School Of Big Change!!” -Janis

“I had some very useful insights that shifted my understanding of life and how human beings are designed. This helped me not only to understand my habits but also changed my whole way of living and going through life.” -Vera

“I’m feeling a shift. My thoughts are still wanting to be in control, but I’m starting to see how fleeting they are. It’s quite empowering.” -Anonymous

“This program has been amazing! For the first time in my life, I can “see” freedom from anxiety. One very important piece I picked up was that I have been well, peaceful, thriving, and full of wisdom since day one of life and always will be. I misunderstood and thought I could never be well because I had a great deal of trauma in early childhood and always felt so different and “unfixable” compared to everyone else. Knowing I was never broken to begin with is incredibly freeing. The LSBC has been a lifesaver, and I am continuing to learn and grow in this understanding as I have signed up for the next level! Thank you, Amy for helping me find true freedom.” -Joyce

“The Little School of Big Change has led me step-by-step to open my own doors toward freedom.” -Michaela

“Somehow it has subtly changed my being. I feel there is still so much more to “uncover” of this Truth but am just super grateful for the sliver I have seen thus far. Thank you!” -Anonymous

“Every example of how obvious our common sense is (knowing when to go to the bathroom, knowing when it is time to go out when taking a bath, … ) there is no decision, you just know… it is funny, because I have made all those things so hard and I questioned all of them. Today I deeply saw how I have flipped things around. Feeling horrible was normal and those seconds of peace and resilience wanting to come through confused me, I needed to stay on track. And so I fought back those glimpses as hard as I could. Today I saw that this understanding means to flip this around. What was my normal and felt truth was not. Those tiny seconds that I thought of as crazy and nasty were connections to mind.” –Ulrike

“Amy shares this psychological understanding is such an engaging and straight-forward way that I easily became reflective and saw the relevance and examples in my own life. I will definitely be watching the videos again!” –Lisa

“When I first found Dr. Amy Johnson, I was consumed with anxious thinking and panic to the point that I could barely leave my house. It sounds like a cliche, but the concepts that Amy teaches in The Little School of Big Change truly changed my life. I feel as if I have woken up to a new way of seeing the world that has alleviated not just anxiety and panic, but improved my relationships and my parenting, as well. It has been one of the most transformative experiences of my life.” –Crystal

“Wow. I had listened to and viewed many audios and videos about the Three Principles based work. This experience going through the Core Curriculum that Dr Amy Johnson made a fundamental shift in me. It feels more quiet, I feel more connected and it all just feels easier and more simple. The beautiful thing is that you will be delighted by what you discover. It will be different and better than what you think it will be. I highly recommend her course as an investment in who you truly are!!!!” –TiVo

“I see more and more everyday that living the moment brings me the peace of mind I have been seeking.” –Jeffrey

“The advanced curriculum drove home that my experience is nothing to be afraid of.” –Mona

“I am so happy to have found Dr. Amy Johnson and to be a part of The Little School of Big Change. Having gone through the core curriculum I am absorbing the understanding that all of my experiences are my thinking come to life. I do feel more peace now especially when I remember that I don’t need to do anything. I’m already there at home base.” –Ann

“Beautiful stories and interviews, helped to open my mind to the relief of knowing that I am not a victim of other people’s thoughts about me; I am experiencing my own thoughts, and creating my every experience in life this way.” –Eileen

“Beautiful stories and interviews, helped to open my mind to the relief of knowing that I am not a victim of other people’s thoughts about me; I am experiencing my own thoughts, and creating my every experience in life this way.” –Shalinee

“The advanced curriculum was very helpful in many different areas in my life. Letting life just unfold rather than putting our head in the lead makes life not at serious and way more peaceful. Thank you.” –Anonymous

“I found the core curriculum helped me to gain insight on how important and natural it is to slow down, relax and let things be as they are. To stop arguing with life. I found other peoples insights interesting and sometimes they showed me things I didn’t see myself. It was really wonderful to see and experience this information with people who are interested in making life simple.” -Mona

“When you’re “done” doing … Amy’s presentation of this information is second to none. When you’re done “doing” and want sustaining change you can be assured Amy points to exactly how our humanness works and how we just simply misunderstand the nature of ourselves. Less “doing” … more understanding, and then you’ll truly be free, experiencing life just as you were meant to, with more joy and awe than you ever thought possible, no matter the circumstances. Thanks Amy :)” –Anney

“What a great curriculum – it keeps guiding me home! It is so freeing to realize that all suffering comes from our thinking and to learn that I don’t have to do anything – no effort, no process needed. I love the simplicity! Change happens by itself. Thank you Amy!” –Valli

“I so enjoyed presentation of the three principles concepts. I found it to be concise (the videos were short, and not overwhelming), and encouraging. I also liked hearing Dr. Pettitt’s perspective at the end of the course, as hearing the same information from another knowledgeable person was helpful–seeing it all from a slightly different angle. I also liked his perspective of the “spiritual” nature of the ideas–something that I, personally, find very important.” –Anonymous

“I experienced a deeper understanding about how my mind works and how my thoughts are not always to be believed.” – Anonymous

“Change has a new meaning for me now. It is the quieting of all I was not and the recognition of all I’ve always been. Amy created a beautiful experience of that simple but profound Truth. It delivered me back Home to my innate peace, freedom, wisdom and love. I wish that joyous reunion on everyone for that’s what will truly change the world.” –Gina

“The analogies throughout the core curriculum were so helpful in simplifying how we give thought it’s power over our peace and how we can stop and let negative thoughts pass so that peace becomes our familiar place to be.” –Judy

“What I have listened to so far has given me great hope. How reassuring and somehow how fitting and empowering is it to hear that we all already have within us all the resources we need to be free from any negativity in our lives. Being none the wiser we have all just been innocently reacting and focussing in on negativity in whatever way we feel will help. Perhaps this negativity has grown out of all proportion to us because we are so focussed on it? Perhaps all we need to is to stop trying and trust that those resources we have will heal and take care of us.” –Jo

“I have absolutely loved the core curriculum of The Little School of Big Change. I am already a coach but I have learned so much from this and I absolutely love the friendly, loving feel this course has but also the trust it develops in people that there are already well and whole and there is nothing that needs to be done to make them otherwise. I cant wait to move to the next level!” –Christine

“This curriculum is powerful! The biggest lesson I learned is to slow down, to do nothing. When we let the mud settle, the water clears by itself. I’m already experiencing how my habits are beginning to fall away – naturally & without any effort. A new paradigm!. Thank you so much Amy !!” –Valli

“This course has been very impactful in helping me understand the impact and nature of thought. I feel more accepting of myself in as much as I realize thoughts pop in and they pop out. When I’m in a low mood place that I may not be aware of I will have low mood thoughts. My feelings alert me to the mood via thought that is everpresent and running in the back ground. And they will pass. Circumstances don’t cause me to feel anything.” –Heather

“The core curriculum resonated, eased and uplifted me like only sacred Truths can. I felt the extraordinary beauty of having my attention directed to what I innately knew but had simply learned to forget.” –Gina

“This understanding has profoundly changed everything for me! I’m so grateful for Amy and the way she’s helped point me toward the wisdom that I already have inside. This is a truly life-changing and wonderful program!” –Maggie

“I loved this understanding from the first time I heard it and knew it was true and I found what I was searching for! I was in awe by all the information but it just stuck mostly intellectually. Now, i am just starting to feel it?. I am just really seeing that my thought indeed created my feeling and that i dont have to try to change the thought to feel good again but just let it go and stop with all the analysing! It’s exciting to get this…. “ –Anonymous

“This is a brilliant program, resourceful, creative, effective in conveying in a compassionate, humorous way, simple, fundamental concepts for living life from the inside out.” -Adriana

“Dear Amy, thanks a lot for this eye-opening course! Listening to it I got an insight very interesting to me: I am anchored very firmly to my feelings and thoughts. They give me safety. But it is FALSE safety. It holds me back from living truly. So this insight still needs to sink in more. I hope to be able to go further into the right direction, letting go this false anchor and living with more freedom!” –Anonymous

“The core curriculum was a peaceful and helpful way to understand everything that is in the book. It’s presented in a slightly different way that helps bring my understanding to the next level.” –Lauren

“Thank you for what you have put together in the Little School of Big Change. Since going through the curriculum, I have already noticed a change in my habit and have just signed up for the next level! I loved your videos and the animations and am looking forward to continuing on this journey.” –Anonymous

“Looking in a new direction, with a new understanding of how life works, is at the heart of the Little School of Big Change. I was full of negative judgments, beliefs, and hopelessness about my eating problem. Little did I know that I already had everything I needed to be healthy and whole. Amy has no rules, mantras, or steps to follow, just a simple understanding that literally turned my life inside out. I’m not only on a journey to ending my lifetime habit, but more importantly, I’m finding peace along the way. After 40 years of self-help books, seminars, and classes, the only person who has opened my eyes to a joy-filled life is Dr. Amy Johnson.” –Judy

“This pretty much shook up everything I thought I knew about myself and my life in the best way possible. Everything I thought I knew to be true, really isn’t. I have noticed in a short time how I have more confidence in myself and surprisingly, I’m pretty creative! Can’t wait to see what else this new understanding will bring.” –Anonymous

“We all try to get back to home base where we feel good and are at peace. Society conditions us to find it from the outside, to buy things or improve ourselves somehow to get there. We try hard, we analyze constantly and read how to get what we want to make us”happy”. We try to find relief from all this pressure by numbing ourselves with bad habits. If only we see that we already can be there by just “DOING NOTHING” and not to get us so worked up so much in the first place.” –Anonymous

“I truly enjoyed going through the core curriculum for the very easy yet powerful way the principles are described. I have been able to see more things that I have heard many times before but only intellectually understood. I guess what impacted me the most is that we naively misunderstood aspects of our life! Obviously I heard this before, but somehow this time I heard it real loud. Thank you Amy! Your way to share this understanding is so endearing and fresh yet so powerful!” –Antonia

“The teachings in this course feel spiritual but yet have a practical application that I have not experienced before. Amy’s guidance feels joyful and safe and I’m excited to live in a world that is changed for me, now that I see the potential in myself and everyone , to live a life of peace and joy.” –Anonymous

“I am pretty new to this understanding but can already see changes in all areas of my life. I can describe it as a new way of viewing your life. As a “sufferer” of chronic pain and anxiety, I never thought it was possible for me to just relax. After working with Amy for six months and joining her amazing “little” school, I have seen some BIG changes. They don’t seem that big from the outside but I am much more relaxed, more patient with others, & surprisingly more creative! More creative thoughts keep on coming every day to me regarding my professional career (something I never really cared about before) and I love it! This understanding has surprisingly woken up this entrepreneurial spirit inside of me…something I NEVER knew was there before, as I have always had low self-esteem. In just six months I believe in myself more than I ever have and have found this brand new appreciation and love for myself. Can’t wait to see what this understanding brings next!” –Anonymous

“This course has a huge transformative power. It is once in a lifetime opportunity to give insights to those roadblocks that prevent you reaching your fullest potential.” –Anonymous

“This core curriculum is an incredibly powerful, deep dive into the understanding. The lessons are beautifully curated to build upon each other to facilitate understanding and subsequent lasting, true change in the most surprisingly effortless way. This understanding is vitally important to all humans, and The Little School of Big Change is an immensely useful guide to uncovering these universal truths that will set you free!” –Amanda

“Whenever I was feeling overwhelmed (and that was my condition for so many years), there was a voice behind that:” you’ re depressed, anxious…you couldn’t do the job…try later” I used to listen to that voice, agree with it, argue with it, struggle with it…be afraid of it… I used to identify it as “my stubborn kid”. There is another option: just smile to it, play with it.” –Anonymous

“I really believe that this has helped me see things so much and i can feel that the shift of long lasting change is happening! I already feel so much more at peace this is the best lessons i have learnt in life. Thank you so much Amy, I really appreciate all you do this will change my inner world which will change the outside world, like you said the inside out. Thanks Amy, I look forward to seeing how my life goes with a light and an open heart!” –Paul

“I am amazed at how much more at ease I feel. I am noticing little things every day.” –Pam

“I really enjoyed the core curriculum videos. They were riveting to say the least. I was looking forward to watching the next video and then the next. I was able to go through all of the videos within a few days and will be revisiting them over and over. Amy uses metaphors exquisitely to get her message across. I would definitely recommend the core curriculum to any one who is exploring the 3 principles..” –Anonymous

“I have been studying the Three Principles for several years (mostly reading books and watching YouTube videos). So I am not entirely unfamiliar with some of the principles presented here. HOWEVER — I got so much out of every one of the lessons… perhaps because Dr. Amy presented them in such an open, simple manner. When something really resonated with me, I could also replay the video, to hear the words again (and again), if I wish. There is something about hearing the words, and having it all presented with an overview/guide/road map (if you will) that really helped me “get” it. I will be referring to this Course again and again. Thank you.” –Patricia

“I enjoyed hearing each bite-size class. The information was easy to understand, as well as evocative, spiritual, and enlightening. Even ideas I had already heard or believed in got deeper into my soulful knowing.” –Irene

“Amy’s adept illustration of the inside out nature of human experience is extremely freeing. In demonstrating what I am not (the noise of chatty mind and lower brain urges) to reveal what I am (the peaceful open space in which this energy is arising in all its vivid aliveness) has allowed me to view my habit from a completely new perspective, it is not a fixed entity indicating a personal flaw but useful feedback guiding me back to well being.” –Anonymous

“It is so insightful and I find it to be so gentle when I was listening to I know it reminded me of how beautiful and how life changing it will be for me and the people around me. Thanks for all you do Amy, I know now that I have an amazing journey in front of me. When I was thinking of enrolling to The Little School of Big Change I knew I had to do it after reading Amy’s books Being Human and Little Book of Big Change they impacted my life so much. The Little School of Big Change is worth every penny. I have bought tons of books on mental health and how to stop binge eating and have read alot of spiritual and self help books and some of it did help but amys approach is from the inside out and about lasting change. I am excited about life again!” –Paul

“I have seen that I am health and wisdom and resilience. My thoughts are not me. I am always coming back to health and my true self.” –Anonymous

“I have come to see that I am the Health, the disease is only thoughts that move through that I have come to identify with.” –Anonymous

“This course is a deeper, gentle insight to how our mind works and why.” –Anonymous

“I’m loving this school! The way Amy explains things is so helpful. It’s easy to digest. I haven’t found this much helpful information about the human experience all in one place yet. I’m already thinking of friends to direct this way. As I take in the school, I’m opening up to the space beyond my thinking more and more as I understand what she speaks of deeper and deeper. This school is a gift.” –Jamie

“I love the simple straight-forward and brilliant metaphors used to explain the 3 principles. Whenever I find myself confused or stressed by my thinking, I simply bring back to mind the images created through metaphor and once again I am reminded of how we truly experience life.” –Lana



Amy Johnson, PhD is a psychologist, coach, author, and speaker who shares a groundbreaking new approach that helps people find true, lasting freedom from unwanted habits via insight rather than willpower. She is author of Being Human (2013), and The Little Book of Big Change: The No-Willpower Approach to Breaking Any Habit (2016). In 2017 she opened The Little School of Big Change, an online school that has helped hundreds of people find freedom from anxiety and habits and live a more peaceful life. Johnson has been a regularly  featured expert on The Steve Harvey Show and Oprah.com, as well in the The Wall Street Journal and Self Magazine.