FRIED. The Burnout Podcast

Mandy Lehto, a coach for senior executives and host of the Enough podcast, dives into the nuanced journey of burnout recovery. She introduces her seven stages of burnout, emphasizing that it's a gradual unraveling rather than a single breakdown. The conversation explores the denial, grief, and identity shifts that high achievers face. Mandy shares personal stories of physical collapse, the limits of external help, and the importance of embracing vulnerability. Ultimately, she advocates for acceptance and reclamation of self, suggesting that true healing involves messy integration.

Tess Brigham, a psychotherapist and 'the millennial therapist', dives into why millennials experience high levels of burnout amidst financial instability and unrealistic work expectations. She reflects on her own quarter-life crisis and the societal pressures that shape this generation's relationship with success. Tess emphasizes the need for empathy across generations, highlighting how Gen Z's focus on mental health is a response to witnessing the toll of constant grind. The conversation urges listeners to reassess their paths and redefine success in a healthier way.

What if you could step into a room filled with the people who hold the keys to the big stages, the book deals, and the most powerful platforms for your voice? The Gateway Gathering Pitch Fest is a visibility accelerator for thought-leaders. Whether you’re ready to pitch or just want to discover what’s possible, join us January 13 – 15. Visit https://bit.ly/friedgatewayStress pushes high-achieving women toward alcohol and alcohol quietly erodes sleep emotional stability and clarity.Cait Donovan welcomes back Casey McGuire Davidson, host of the Hello Someday podcast and a trusted voice for sober-curious women, to examine a pattern many women experience without fully naming. Alcohol is often positioned as relief, reward, and sophistication, yet over time it can leave women feeling more anxious, more reactive, and less resilient in their daily lives.Rather than treating drinking as a moral issue or a personal failure, the focus stays on information and awareness. How does alcohol affect sleep and emotional regulation? What shifts when hormones change in midlife? How much of what feels like stress, burnout, or anxiety might be amplified by something we were told would help? Removing alcohol, even briefly, becomes a way to see your real baseline and understand what your body and nervous system are actually asking for.This episode is an invitation to experiment with curiosity instead of judgment. What might you learn about yourself if you stopped numbing for a month? What becomes possible when rest feels deeper, moods feel steadier, and choices feel more conscious? Dry January is framed less as a challenge and more as a chance to gather clarity and decide what truly supports the life you are building.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Meet Casey McGuire Davidson02:00 How Stress and Alcohol Reinforce Each Other06:00 Alcohol’s Impact on Sleep, Anxiety, and Emotional Regulation18:05 Perimenopause, Hormones, and Changing Alcohol Tolerance23:55 A Practical and Sustainable Approach to Dry JanuaryConnect with Casey McGuire Davidson:Casey’s Website Follow Casey on Instagram  Connect with Casey on LinkedIn Get The Free 30-Day Sober Guide To Quitting DrinkingHire Cait to Speak:Initial Call with CaitIf you’re tired and can’t quite name why, this is a good place to start. Cait’s free Core Values guide helps you figure out what’s draining you and what’s worth protecting. Grab it here: https://bit.ly/corevaluesfreebieWhat if you could step into a room filled with the people who hold the keys to the big stages, the book deals, and the most powerful platforms for your voice? The Gateway Gathering Pitch Fest is a visibility accelerator for thought-leaders. Whether you’re ready to pitch or just want to discover what’s possible, join us January 13 – 15. Visit https://bit.ly/friedgatewayPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Sometimes the next step is simply asking for help. Sarah Vosen is here to guide you through it: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingWinter fear can feel like burnout recovery slipping away but this episode reframes fear and depletion as a natural part of winter rather than a sign of winter burnout or failure. In this #sarahshares episode, Sarah Vosen speaks directly to the quiet panic that surfaces when low energy and fear return during the darkest part of the year. When light fades and energy pulls inward, burnout recovery can feel fragile. Fear often replaces simple exhaustion, especially when the nervous system is already depleted. Sarah offers a grounding reframe. That fear is not proof you are backsliding. It is information. Winter exposes depletion more clearly, which can feel unsettling, but it also invites a different response.Instead of pushing through or overriding low energy, the conversation centers on safety, rest, and conservation. What does safety actually feel like in your body? What helps you settle when fear is loud and rest feels out of reach? Winter is not asking for progress or productivity. It is asking for care, containment, and trust that restoration often begins when you stop fighting the dark.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Embracing Winter's Wisdom05:06 Understanding Fear in Winter09:47 Seeking Safety and Self-Care17:10 Navigating Hibernation and RestorationRelated episodes you might want to listen to next:Irrational Fears are a Sign of DepletionBurnout and SleepIf you’re ready to take the next step toward healing, you can explore 1:1 coaching with Sarah Vosen at bit.ly/unfriedcoachConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahSometimes the next step is simply asking for help. Sarah Vosen is here to guide you through it: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Discover why asking for help is often viewed as weakness and how it can actually be a source of strength. Sarah guides Samira, a listener battling burnout, through the complexities of over-independence and the importance of setting clear expectations with support. They delve into the emotional safety of close relationships, how to clarify needs, and the significance of mapping out different sources of support. By reframing resilience as a skill built through receiving help, they highlight the transformative power of community and self-care.

Hailey Paige Magee, an author and certified coach, shares her insights on battling burnout and loneliness. She discusses the quiet collapse of identity that many experience when societal expectations hinder true fulfillment. Hailey emphasizes the importance of reconnecting with community after periods of isolation and the necessity of healthy relationships. The conversation also tackles the reshaping of success beyond metrics, the discomfort of reentering social spaces, and finding meaning through collective experiences rather than individual achievements.

Sarah Vosen, Director of coaching for BurnBOLD™ and expert in burnout recovery, dives deep into the emotional turmoil that high achievers face when feeling burnt out. She explains how unrealistic self-expectations can spiral into feelings of failure. Listeners learn practical strategies to assess their energy, prioritize tasks based on true capacity, and avoid overcommitting. Sarah emphasizes the importance of honesty about one’s limits and encourages rebuilding self-trust while navigating recovery from burnout.

The conversation dives into how fall amplifies feelings of grief and guilt, linking it to the body's need for emotional release. It explores practical self-care techniques, such as breathing exercises and allowing tears to process stored emotions. Listeners learn about the importance of hydration, warmth, and regular bowel movements for both physical and emotional well-being. The discussion encourages embracing the season's natural rhythm, inviting introspection and self-compassion as a pathway to healing.

Burnout isn’t the end of your story. With Sarah Vosen’s guidance, recovery becomes not just possible—but sustainable. Learn more: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingBurnout doesn’t end with a mindset shift—it begins when you finally allow grief, emptiness, and small sparks of joy to coexist without needing to fix any of them.Author and speaker Cyndie Spiegel joins Cait to talk about what it means to live inside the gray area, the space where both pain and beauty can exist at once. She shares how walking away from a high-profile fashion career led her to teaching, writing, and discovering the idea of microjoys: brief, accessible moments of light that don’t erase hardship but remind us life still holds goodness. Together, they unpack how black-and-white thinking fuels burnout, why forced gratitude doesn’t work, and how simple awareness can shift everything.What if healing starts with noticing what else is true? What might open up when you stop chasing “better” and start paying attention to what’s already here?Episode Breakdown:00:00 Introduction02:00 Cyndie Spiegel’s Burnout Story in the Fashion Industry08:35 Finding Purpose Through Yoga and Teaching10:37 Writing A Year of Positive Thinking16:08 The Birth of Microjoys18:40 Finding Hope When Life Isn’t Okay24:30 Living in the Gray: Holding Multiple Truths32:54 Practicing Microjoys in Daily Life39:21 Where to Find Cyndie Spiegel and Final ReflectionsConnect with Cyndie Spiegel:Cyndie’s Website Follow Cyndie on Instagram Connect with Cyndie on LinkedIn Sign up to Cyndie’s Email ListConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahBurnout isn’t the end of your story. With Sarah Vosen’s guidance, recovery becomes not just possible—but sustainable. Learn more: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Healing happens faster with guidance. Give yourself permission to ask for and receive help: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingMost people think they’ve failed at change when they’ve actually just hit the part where being human takes over.Cait Donovan is taking a closer look at why behavior change is so hard to maintain and why relapse isn’t a sign of weakness but proof that your brain is doing exactly what it’s designed to do. She explains how old habits never fully disappear, they just sit quietly, waiting for a moment of stress or fatigue to reappear. Change takes effort, repetition, and compassion for the part of you that’s still learning.Cait shares how progress depends on context and patience. A new habit might feel strong at home but crumble at work, and that’s normal. The real work isn’t about erasing the old pattern but building trust in your ability to return to the new one again and again. This episode is a reminder that being human is not the problem, it’s the process.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Understanding Why Behavior Change Feels Impossible01:39 How the Brain Builds and Keeps Old Habits04:10 Why New Behaviors Don’t Stick in Every Environment06:20 Relapse as a Normal Part of Behavior Change09:01 Final Takeaways: Being Human Is the ProcessConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahHealing happens faster with guidance. Give yourself permission to ask for and receive help: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm