#straightwithcait: What PT Taught Me About Burnout Recovery

Burnout recovery isn’t about doing more—it’s about finding the right help. Begin here: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingBurnout convinces you that rest should be enough, and when it isn’t, you assume you’re broken.In this #straightfromcait episode, Cait shares how a shoulder injury revealed a missing step in her own recovery process. Two months of full rest left her pain-free but not ready. When her physical therapist handed her one-pound weights and she could barely lift them, she realized the injury had healed, but her strength hadn’t returned.That moment reframed everything. Most of us focus on the pause — the sleeping, the pulling back, the stopping. But recovery isn’t just the absence of strain. At some point, rest has to turn into rebuild. Gently. Slowly. Without ego. This isn’t about going back to who you were before burnout,  it’s about training for who you’re becoming.If you’ve been wondering why life still feels heavier than it should, maybe nothing’s wrong with you at all. Maybe you’re not fragile,  just not rebuilt yet.Episode Breakdown:00:00 What Burnout Recovery Gets Wrong About Rest01:19 The Shoulder Injury That Sparked a Realization02:22 Physical Therapy and the Wake-Up Call of Weakness03:06 Rest vs. Rebuild in Burnout Recovery07:12 Nutrition, Movement, and Mental Habits That Restore Capacity09:09 Recovery as a Foundation, Not the Finish LineConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahBurnout recovery isn’t about doing more—it’s about finding the right help. Begin here.Podcast 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/coachingBurnout hides best inside people who love their work so much they don’t notice it draining the life out of them.PGA coach and RGX founder Will Robins joins Cait to unpack how devotion to service can turn into slow-motion burnout, especially when you’re praised for being endlessly available. He shares how surviving the 2004 tsunami gave him purpose, but years later COVID thrust him into a different kind of survival mode, fielding nonstop crisis calls from golf pros worldwide. Passion became obligation, generosity became emotional labor, and saying yes became his default until resentment started to seep in. Together, he and Cait expose how burnout isn’t about workload—it’s about tension, expectations, and the belief that being needed equals being valuable.They map a way back through honest boundaries, aligned priorities, and Will’s Scoring Method as a metaphor for life: stop swinging for perfection and focus on consistent, pressure-free plays. You'll hear practical language for saying no without guilt, a reframing of stress as a physical reaction rather than a personal failing, and a challenge to stop optimizing your recovery like another achievement project. If you're the “reliable one” who keeps muscling through, this episode invites you to build a life where people need you less, and love you more because of it.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Burnout and Purpose After Surviving the Tsunami02:45 COVID Burnout and the Cost of Constant Service08:04 Why High Performers Miss Burnout Signs11:47 Burnout Culture in the Golf Industry and Beyond17:31 Rebuilding Life with Faith, Health, and Family21:02 Setting Boundaries Without Guilt32:02 The Scoring Method for Life and Burnout36:00 Mastering Emotional RegulationConnect with Will Robins:Will’s WebsiteFollow Will on Instagram Connect with Will on LinkedIn Connect 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

Sometimes the bravest step is reaching out. Support is waiting for you here: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingControl shows up early in Christy’s story — first as protection, then as identity, and eventually as exhaustion. She has spent years anticipating other people’s needs, convinced that staying ahead of every outcome would keep things safe. Instead, it left her overextended and unsure how to take up space without earning it through service.In this real-time coaching session, Sarah helps Christy notice the cost of constantly shaping herself around other people’s comfort. She isn’t confused about what’s wrong, she’s simply never been given permission to stop carrying so much.The turning point comes when she names one commitment she quietly resents: a year-long carpool obligation she agreed to out of pressure rather than choice. Renegotiating that responsibility becomes the first act of repair. It’s not about convenience. It’s about finally allowing reciprocity.This episode offers an honest look at the earliest stage of burnout recovery,  the moment you decide that exhaustion is no longer proof of goodness. One boundary. One ask. One hour of energy reclaimed.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Live Burnout Coaching with Sarah Vosen01:15 Christy Realizes She’s Burned Out for the First Time04:30 Control and Codependency as Burnout Fuel09:00 Parenting Crisis and Emotional Breaking Point16:00 The Tree of Life Exercise for Energy Awareness23:45 Naming Resentment and the Carpool Boundary29:00 Learning to Delegate Without Guilt37:30 Choosing Discomfort That Leads to Recovery40:00 Final Reflection: What Will You Prune from Your Life?LinksConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahSometimes the bravest step is reaching out. Support is waiting for you here: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

The right support changes everything. Our Director of Coaching, Sarah Vosen, combines expertise and compassion to walk beside you: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingBurnout recovery gets complicated as Sarah sits down with Janine, an anonymous guest who is more than halfway through medical leave but still unable to rest. She loves her team and takes pride in her work, yet the thought of returning to the same boss and culture fills her with dread. Even time away hasn’t quieted the anxious loop of questions: Should she go back? Ask for a different role? Step into something lighter? Or leave altogether? And how do you listen to the body’s warning signals when the brain insists you “should” push through?Through thoughtful coaching, Sarah helps Janine notice how her nervous system responds to each option and what those reactions reveal about her deeper truth. The turning point comes when Janine recognizes she isn’t looking for more information, she’s been waiting for permission to trust herself. One small next step, like reading a book without interruption, becomes more than rest. It’s an act of self-leadership.This conversation pulls back the curtain on the messy middle of burnout recovery. There’s no perfect plan or quick fix - just the slow work of honoring signals, taking honest steps, and remembering that rest isn’t earned, it’s allowed.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Real-Time Burnout Coaching with Sarah Vosen02:11 Janine’s Burnout Story and Medical Leave Struggles04:40 Recognizing a Toxic Work Environment07:27 Should I Return to Work or Walk Away?08:15 Financial Concerns and Early Retirement12:10 Anxiety About Returning to the Same Boss20:04 High Achievers and the Pressure to Recover Quickly24:52 The Trap of Maximizing Leave Time31:11 Brain vs. Body: Who Do You Trust?35:03 Learning to Trust Intuition and Body Signals40:08 Creating Safety Through Small Choices45:15 Choosing Restorative Activities Over ProductivityConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahThe right support changes everything. Our Director of Coaching, Sarah Vosen, combines expertise and compassion to walk beside you: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Your energy and well-being are worth investing in. Explore what recovery could look like for you: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingGrammy Award–winning producer Barry Goldstein joins Cait Donovan to explore burnout and the healing power of music. Barry shares how chasing success in New York’s music scene drained the joy from his craft - until he began composing at the rhythm of a relaxed heart. That experiment sparked “acoustoceuticals,” music designed to calm the nervous system, restore heart-brain coherence, and reignite passion.Together, Cait and Barry unpack why some music heals while other music agitates, how to use sound as “musical nutrition” throughout your day, and why your heartbeat may be the most powerful frequency of all. Burnout isn’t the end… it’s a chance to fan the flame back to life!Episode Breakdown:00:00 Introduction and Guest Barry Goldstein03:26 Burnout in the Music Industry: Barry’s Story08:04 Rediscovering Passion Through Heart-Centered Music09:25 Healing at 60 Beats Per Minute20:25 Entrainment: How Music Syncs With the Heart and Body30:46 Resonance vs. Dissonance in Burnout Recovery42:09 The Healing Power of Mantras and Daily Music PracticesConnect with Barry Goldstein:Barry’s WebsiteFollow Barry on InstagramConnect with Barry on LinkedInConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

You don’t have to walk this road alone. https://caitdonovan.com/coaching connects you with Sarah Vosen, our Director of Coaching, who’s helped countless people reclaim their energy.What does burnout look like before it takes you all the way down? For Emily Slachetka, it showed up as constant overwhelm, unexpected tears, and the thought of leaving a job she once valued. She joined UnFried hoping for validation that her workplace was toxic. Instead, she discovered her real challenge was over-functioning.Emily shares how she learned to separate capability from capacity, the unexpected relief of “life pruning,” and the daily practices that helped her rebuild balance - like meditation, clearer boundaries, and asking for help. She also reflects on realigning her life with core values, from choosing a home with green space to recognizing the value of rest and doing nothing.How do you know when you’re taking on too much? What shifts when you ask for help early? And how might work feel different if more of us normalized being human? Emily’s story is a reminder that recovery doesn’t always mean dramatic change. It can begin with small, intentional choices.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Introduction: Emily Slachetka02:07 Emily’s Burnout Story and Joining UnFried05:59 Toxic Workplace or Personal Overfunctioning?08:48 Capability vs. Capacity Explained10:05 Life Pruning and Asking for Help15:19 Listening to the Body’s Signals22:13 The Value of Doing Nothing23:14 Moving States with Burnout Protection in Mind36:24 Reigniting Passion, Purpose, and Identity Beyond WorkConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahYou don’t have to walk this road alone. https://caitdonovan.com/coaching connects you with Sarah Vosen, our Director of Coaching, who’s helped countless people reclaim their energy.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

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/coachingToxic bosses don’t only wear people down, they spark the very burnout cycles that drain whole teams. Cait Donovan talks with author and changemaker Mita Mallick about the damage bad leadership leaves behind and the toll it takes on both people and organizations. Mita shares personal stories, including her experience with a boss she nicknamed “Medusa,” whose intimidation and cruelty pushed her into anxiety and disengagement. That season of her career led to what she calls a “get out plan,” a way to take the energy of frustration and turn it into action through networking, reflection, and mapping a path forward. How do you know when it’s time to make your own plan, and what would change if you gave yourself permission to act before you hit the breaking point?The conversation also turns to the harder truth that under pressure any of us can slip into toxic behaviors. Mita and Cait explore why leadership requires self-awareness, accountability, and vulnerability rather than surface-level fixes or quick answers. Drawing from her new book “The Devil Emails at Midnight,” Mita challenges us to rethink how we respond to unhealthy work cultures and to consider the responsibility we each carry in shaping them. What kind of workplace are you helping to build, and how might things shift if you took ownership of the way you show up every day?Episode Breakdown:00:00 Introduction to Fried, the Burnout Podcast00:57 Meet Mita Mallick: Author of The Devil Emails at Midnight02:26 Burnout Story: Surviving “Medusa” the Toxic Boss09:09 Creating a “Get Out” Plan to Escape Burnout17:13 Urgency Culture and Toxic Leadership Patterns27:01 Workplace Bias, Pregnancy Penalties, and Burnout31:37 Talent Hoarding and Betrayal at Work38:19 Building Self-Awareness and Better LeadershipConnect with Mita Mallick:Mita’s Website Follow Mita on Instagram Connect with Mita on LinkedInConnect 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/coaching.Burnout shows up in many ways, but at its core it often signals a life out of alignment. Cait Donovan sits down with executive coach and author Jerry Colonna to explore what happens when outward success hides an inner collapse. Jerry opens up about the years he spent chasing achievement as a venture capitalist and how every new milestone left him feeling worse instead of fulfilled. What does it mean when the world applauds your accomplishments but your soul feels heavier with each step forward? And how do we begin to untangle the beliefs that keep us performing long after they’ve stopped serving us?Jerry shares how radical self-inquiry became a way back to himself. Rather than a process of blame, it is a practice of curiosity, asking questions that cut through guilt and open space for conscious choice. He and Cait reflect on how early coping strategies like perfectionism may once have offered safety, yet can slowly erode well-being over time. They also look at the role of privilege and access in recovery, naming the tension between personal agency and systemic limits.Jerry’s story of “Grandfather Boulder” is a reminder that listening itself can be an act of healing. Could paying attention to our own pain, to each other, to the systems around us, the beginning of change? This episode invites you to consider what alignment looks like in your own life and how the ongoing work of inquiry can open the door to both resilience and growth.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Welcoming Jerry Colonna02:39 Jerry’s Burnout Story and Misalignment08:03 Financial Success and the Burnout Trap16:17 Radical Self-Inquiry as a Path to Healing24:00 Choosing Life in the Depth of Burnout30:06 Rewiring Beliefs and Making Conscious Choices40:30 Personal Growth as an Act of Resistance46:23 Grandfather Boulder and the Power of ListeningLinksReboot: Authentic CEO Coaching and Leadership Development Connect with Jerry Colonna:Connect with Jerry on LinkedInFollow Jerry on Instagram Connect 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/coaching.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

You don’t have to carry burnout alone. The right support can help you breathe again—start here: https://caitdonovan.com/coachingBurnout recovery gets real as Sarah Vosen sits down with an anonymous guest who feels trapped by perfectionism, people-pleasing, and the voice of an inner critic that makes self-compassion feel out of reach. In this episode, she’s trying something different for the podcast: a real-time coaching session. Her guest “Kate” describes how burnout began with constant illness and eventually knocked her flat, leaving her exhausted and uncertain about how to move forward. Years later, Kate still feels caught in a loop of trial and error, trying new practices, hoping for change, and losing faith when nothing seems to last. How do you find the courage to say no before your body forces you to? And how do you begin to quiet the inner critic that insists you’ll never get better?Through thoughtful coaching, Sarah helps Kate see the fear of saying no for what it is: a strategy that once kept her safe but now keeps her stuck. She offers a new way to look at recovery, like a scale that can slowly tip away from self-judgment and toward self-compassion with each small act of courage. Along the way, Kate begins to see how even the tiniest pieces of evidence, moments of asking for help, choosing rest, or protecting her needs, can start to shift the balance.This conversation opens a window into the real work of burnout recovery. It’s messy and slow, but it’s also a practice of rediscovering your voice, setting boundaries that protect your energy, and remembering that even a flicker of hope is proof that change is possible.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Real-Time Coaching on Burnout Recovery02:26 Kate’s Burnout Journey and First Signs of Collapse05:09 Career Uncertainty and Feeling Stuck10:52 Battling the Inner Critic and Self-Judgment12:38 Fear of Saying No and People-Pleasing Patterns14:13 Rediscovering Passion for Storytelling and Audio20:08 Hyper-Independence and the Struggle to Ask for Help24:02 The Core Loop: Avoiding “No” to Feel Safe but Staying Stuck33:00 The Burnout Recovery Process and the Unfried Program43:03 Practicing Self-Compassion During Setbacks49:41 Building Evidence for Growth and RecoveryLinksHailey Page Magee episodeKristin Neff episodeYour Burnt Out Brain Is Mean, And A Liar episodeConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahYou don’t have to carry burnout alone. The right support can help you breathe again—start here: https://caitdonovan.com/coaching.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Burnout Recovery works better with support. UNFRIED is our small group (5 people max!) coaching program to help guide you through your recovery. Apply now! [http://bit.ly/unfried]Burnout reaches far beyond the office, touching every layer of health, purpose, and identity, and Dr. Jen Wagner joins Cait Donovan to uncover what true recovery really looks like. As Chief Health and Performance Officer at Canyon Ranch, Dr. Wagner brings both professional expertise and lived experience, sharing how her own burnout as a young physician and mother reshaped her path and deepened her commitment to helping others heal. Together, she and Cait explore why burnout isn’t just mental exhaustion but a full-body, whole-life disruption that can strip away joy, relationships, and meaning.This episode shines a light on Canyon Ranch’s integrative model of care, where labs, glucose and cortisol monitoring, nutrition, mental health, and spiritual practices come together to give people the tools and support they need to rebuild. Recovery, they emphasize, is not an overnight solution but a 12 to 18 month journey of self-awareness, community, and purpose realignment. Along the way, they tackle the systemic pressures that push women leaders to the brink and the cultural belief that suffering through misery is a badge of honor. What emerges is a powerful reminder that joy and well-being are not luxuries but essentials, and that choosing recovery is one of the most important investments we can make in ourselves and the people we love.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Meet Dr. Jen Wagner and the Burnout Retreat03:28 How Burnout Reshapes Body, Identity, and Purpose04:35 Recovery vs. Prevention of Burnout06:56 Medical Testing and Biomarkers That Matter10:18 Integrative Care and Community at Canyon Ranch13:53 Dr. Jen Wagner’s Personal Burnout Story22:09 Inside the Burnout Retreat Experience29:12 Long-Term Recovery and Ongoing SupportConnect with Dr. Jen Wagner:Canyon Ranch Canyon Ranch: Beat BurnoutFollow Canyon Ranch on Instagram LinkedInConnect with Cait:Initial Call with CaitInitial Call with SarahBurnout Recovery works better with support. UNFRIED is our small group (5 people max!) coaching program to help guide you through your recovery. Apply now! [http://bit.ly/unfried]Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm