Burnout to Brilliance by Balanceology
Exploring burnout prevention, recovery, and what it means to create sustainable, human ways of working and living.
Hosted by Jayne Morris MCC, the UKās leading Executive Burnout Coach, founder of Balanceology, and author of Burnout to Brilliance: Strategies for Sustainable Success, the podcast features thoughtful conversations with clinicians, researchers, coaches, and leaders working at the forefront of burnout and wellbeing.
Each episode offers evidence-informed insight and compassionate reflection, moving beyond quick fixes to explore burnout as both a personal and systemic experience, and how recovery can lead not just back to functioning, but forward to clarity, connection, and meaningful success.
Burnout to Brilliance by Balanceology
Season 4: Episode 5 - Burnout, Trauma and the Nervous System with Dr Susanna Petche
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Many people think of trauma as something dramatic that happened in the past.
Yet trauma often leaves its mark not through a single event itself, or accumulation of experiences, but through the adaptations we make in order to survive it.
In this episode of the Burnout to Brilliance Podcast, Jayne Morris MCC is joined by Dr Susanna Petche to explore the often-overlooked relationship between trauma, nervous system regulation and burnout.
Together they unpack how unresolved experiences can quietly shape the way we move through life, influencing our capacity, relationships, decision-making and ability to rest. They explore how coping strategies that once protected us can become exhausting to sustain over time and why burnout is often far more complex than workload alone.
This is a compassionate and thought-provoking conversation that challenges simplistic views of burnout and invites a deeper understanding of what may be happening beneath the surface.
In this episode, we explore:
- The connection between trauma history and burnout
- Why trauma is not defined by the event itself but by its impact
- How the nervous system adapts in order to stay safe
- The hidden cost of long-term survival strategies
- Fight, flight, freeze, flop and fawn responses
- Why burnout often develops gradually over time
- The role of psychological safety in recovery
- The difference between coaching and therapy
- Why self-awareness alone is not always enough
- Creating pathways towards healing, support and sustainable recovery
About the guest
Dr Susanna Petche is the founder of Trauma Sense and creator of the C-Sense methodology. A former GP with over 25 years' experience, she holds an MSc in Psychological Trauma and specialises in helping people understand the lasting impact of trauma on health, wellbeing, relationships and performance.
Susanna was the Clinical Lead and Lead Programme Designer for ConnectionWorks, an NHS-funded 12-month programme supporting people living with complex PTSD, and is a former award-winning GP teacher and Clinical Facilitator at Brighton and Sussex Medical School.
Her 2025 TEDx talk, Is Trauma Costing You Your Future?, further established her as a leading voice in trauma-informed practice in the UK.
Through her work with coaches, healthcare professionals and organisations, Susanna helps people make sense of how past experiences can shape present-day patterns, relationships and resilience, bringing a compassionate, practical and trauma-informed perspective to recovery and growth.
Listen & subscribe
š§ Also available on:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube
Resources & links
š Dr Susanna Petche on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-susanna-petche/
Website:
https://www.trauma-sense.com/
Connect with Jayne Morris MCC
The UKās leading executive burnout coach & author of Burnout to Brilliance
LinkedIn: @jaynemorrisMCC
Burnout to Brilliance on Amazon
Follow Balanceology
LinkedIn: @Balanceology
Website: www.balanceology.uk
About Balanceology
Balanceology is a leading coaching organisation dedicated to preventing workplace burnout and restoring sustainable success. Through talks, workshops, trainings, coaching and retreats, Balanceology supports individuals and organisations to work well, live fully, and thrive.
The Balanceology Certified Burnout Coach CPD Training is ICF accredited and carries 64 CCEUs