Hey Reader, lets talk about why Your "Healthy Habits" Might Be Hiding a Nervous System Crisis.

​Elsa Valentine joined me on The Story I'm Telling Myself Podcast this week to share her story of burnout, which I promise you is completely different from the hundreds of other burnout stories you've heard.

Why? Because Elsa is doing the deeper work and uncovering the nervous system dysregulation that has defined her life since childhood.

On the outside, she was the picture of entrepreneurial success, scaling a nutrition brand to 600 stores. Then, her body physically shut down in the middle of a trade show that forced her to step away from the business she'd built.

Elsa had to confront one core truth: you can’t “hustle” your way through healing.

One of my favorite takeaways from this conversation was Elsa’s revelation that she had been “managing” her body as if it were a business unit rather than forming a relationship with it. "When we operate with a dysregulated nervous system, our vision and our physiology move at different paces, eventually leading to burnout."

Reader, I have to tell you that I find Elsa's journey and work to be fresh perspective on a much over-talked topic of burnout.

It makes me think that we all have deeper work to do in building a relationship with our bodies and listening to their wisdom.

To move toward true mindset mastery and personal growth, Elsa outlined these four action steps:

1. Check in with the Subtlest Sensation: Regularly ask yourself, “What is the most subtle sensation I can feel in my body right now?” to bring your awareness inward.
2. Master Diaphragmatic Breathing: Use full breathwork to release the tension often locked in the diaphragm.
3. Widen Your Perspective: When in fight-or-flight, your vision tunnels; practice physically widening your peripheral gaze to signal safety to your brain.
4. Practice Cognitive Reappraisal: Use tools like the Innate app concept to record messages to your future self, allowing you to review intense emotions later from a place of objective calm.

True empowerment isn’t about being “fixed”; it’s about having the emotional agency to welcome your full lived experience without resistance.

​Catch the whole conversation here or starting tomorrow on your favorite podcast platform. AND be sure to share this episode with three friends or family members because this message is one others need to hear.

Here's this week's powerful questions Activation Guide to help you start your journey: ​​TSITM Ep 69 Journal.pdf​​​​​​.

Cheers to deeper healing,

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