Want more of this? On Substack I share longer reflections, practical tools, and honest conversations that don't make it onto the pod. Join the Burnout-Free Me community: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Episode Details:

You've done the work. You've built the career. So why does it still feel like you're dragging yourself through every single day? In this milestone 150th episode, Dr. Amy Grimm gets real about the three things she wishes she'd known before becoming a coach — and why every ambitious woman in a high-responsibility role needs to hear them.

This episode isn't just for aspiring coaches. It's for the new grad vet suddenly expected to lead a whole team. The woman who just got promoted and is quietly terrified. The entrepreneur who left stability to chase something that actually lights her up. These are the lessons nobody tells you — and they might change how you see everything.

What You'll Learn:

• Why stepping into something new tends to surface the exact patterns you thought you'd already dealt with (and what that actually means)
• The real reason your burnout followed you into your next chapter — and how to finally stop running from it
• What one early coaching failure taught Amy about the limits of her training — and the humbling moment she realized what was missing
• Why failing more than you succeed isn't a red flag — it's literally the mechanism that creates long-term success
• The surprising reason confidence matters more than having perfect skills — whether you're a coach, a leader, or just trying to show up better
• How perfectionism quietly keeps high-achievers small, stuck, and mentally replaying every conversation they've ever had

Plus — Amy celebrates 150 episodes and reflects on the evolution from The Daring DVM Podcast to Burnout-Free Me, and what it means to finally be building something that feels like her.

Links & Resources:

• Join the Burnout-Free Me community on Substack: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com
• Work with Amy: https://burnoutfreeme.com

About Amy:

Dr. Amy Grimm is a veterinarian, success coach, and wellbeing expert and the host of Burnout-Free Me — the podcast for high-achieving women who are done running on empty. Real talk, practical tools, and honest mindset shifts every week.

If this episode resonated, please take 30 seconds to leave a rating and review — it helps more women find the show. And don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Want more of this? On Substack I share longer reflections, practical tools, and honest conversations that don't make it onto the pod. Join the Burnout-Free Me community: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Episode Details:

You've hit the milestones, built the relationship, chased the goals. So why doesn't anything feel that different? In this episode, Dr. Amy Grimm gets real about what turning 40 actually taught her -- and it's not what she expected.

Amy shares three of the biggest mindset shifts from her 39th year: how she coached herself through the gut-punch of discovering people she cared about held beliefs she finds genuinely harmful, why no single achievement will ever change your life the way you think it will, and how she made high-stakes decisions in the middle of real economic uncertainty without losing her mind. The thread running through all of it? Whether you're willing to tell yourself the truth.

Honest, a little political, deeply personal, and completely relatable. You're going to hear yourself in this one.

What You'll Learn:

• Why your brain dismisses your own growth the moment it happens
• The sneaky belief that makes disagreement feel like a personal attack
• Why the milestone you're chasing won't change your life -- and what actually will
• How to make hard decisions when nobody can give you the certainty you're looking for
• The one practice underneath all three lessons that nobody talks about enough

Links & Resources:

• Subscribe to Burnout-Free Me on Substack: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com
• Work with Amy: https://burnoutfreeme.com

About Amy:

Dr. Amy Grimm is a veterinarian, success coach, and wellbeing expert and the host of Burnout-Free Me -- the podcast for high-achieving women who are done running on empty. Real talk, practical tools, and honest mindset shifts every week.

If this episode resonated, please leave a rating and review—it helps more women find the show. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Want more of this? On Substack I share longer reflections, practical tools, and honest conversations that don't make it onto the pod. Join the Burnout-Free Me community: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Episode Details:

What if your job has been quietly affecting you — and you never knew it had a name?

Secondary traumatic stress is one of the most underrecognized contributors to burnout in high-achieving professionals. It doesn't arrive all at once. It accumulates slowly, invisibly, the way water heats around a frog in a pot. And most people don't realize how far it's gone until they've already crossed their limit.

In Part 2 of this special Mental Health Awareness Month series, Dr. Amy Grimm goes deep on secondary traumatic stress — what it is, what makes you vulnerable to it, how to recognize it in your own body and behavior, and where to start when it comes to taking care of yourself. She walks through the Contributing Factors Venn Diagram developed by Françoise Mathieu and the TEND Academy — a powerful framework for understanding the eight risk factor categories that shape your personal stress threshold.

This is one of the most important conversations in the burnout space. And nobody taught us this.

What You'll Learn

• What secondary traumatic stress actually is — and the neuroscience behind why it happens
• The 8 risk factor categories from Françoise Mathieu's Contributing Factors model
• Moral distress, empathic strain, and systems failure — and why they matter for burnout
• How to recognize secondary traumatic stress in yourself across three symptom categories
• The three warning sign categories to watch for: physical, behavioral, and emotional
• Where to start when it comes to managing and recovering from secondary traumatic stress

Links & Resources

Substack: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Coaching & website: https://burnoutfreeme.com

TEND Academy (Françoise Mathieu): https://www.tendacademy.ca

Contributing Factors Venn Diagram: https://www.tendacademy.ca/venn-diagram/

Missed Part 1? Listen to Episode 147: Trauma 101: Understanding the Basics of Traumatic Stress

About Dr. Amy Grimm

Dr. Amy Grimm is a veterinarian, success coach, and wellbeing expert and the host of Burnout-Free Me -- the podcast for high-achieving women who are done running on empty. Real talk, practical tools, and honest mindset shifts every week.

Enjoyed this episode?

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if this show has been valuable to you, please take a moment to leave a rating and review. It helps other women find this community — and that matters.

Want more of this? On Substack, I share longer reflections, practical tools, and honest conversations that don't make it onto the pod. Join the Burnout-Free Me community: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Episode Details:

You've probably felt it — completely wrecked by your job in a way that sleep doesn't fix, or on edge in a way you couldn't quite explain. What if the missing piece wasn't a solution, but a language?

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and in this episode, Dr. Amy Grimm kicks off a special two-part series timed to her upcoming presentation on compassion fatigue at AVMA in July. Episode 147 lays the foundation: the trauma terminology that changes how you understand yourself, your stress, and your burnout.

This isn't therapy. It's information — the kind that finally makes the things you've been carrying make sense.

What You'll Learn

• What it actually means to be trauma-informed — and why it matters beyond healthcare
• The ACE study: what adverse childhood experiences are, what the research found, and how to think about your own score
• Big T vs. Little T trauma — and why the labels can help or hurt
• The three types of traumatic stress: primary, secondary, and environmental
• Why trauma is defined by the response, not the event — and what that means for you

Links & Resources

Substack: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com

Coaching & website: https://burnoutfreeme.com

ACE Questionnaire: https://www.acesaware.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/ACE-Questionnaire-for-Adults-Identified-English-rev.7.26.22.pdf

About Dr. Amy Grimm

Dr. Amy Grimm is a veterinarian, success coach, and wellbeing expert and the host of Burnout-Free Me -- the podcast for high-achieving women who are done running on empty. Real talk, practical tools, and honest mindset shifts every week.

Enjoyed this episode?

Subscribe so you don't miss Episode 148, where we go deep on secondary traumatic stress — the burnout you don't see coming. And if this show has been valuable to you, please leave a rating and review. It helps other women find this community.

Join me on Substack: If you’re ready for more honest, real conversations about burnout, nervous system regulation, and creating a life that actually feels good to live… along with tools and practices that actually help…

👉 Subscribe here: https://amygrimmburnoutfreeme.substack.com/

That’s where I share deeper insights, behind-the-scenes thoughts, and practical ways to start shifting out of survival mode.

Share This Episode: If this episode made you feel seen or helped something click… send it to a friend who needs to hear it too.

The Burnout Fix A practical tool designed to help high-achieving professionals regulate their nervous system and break free from the productivity trap.

Learn more at: burnoutfreeme.com

Work With Amy

If you're a high-achieving professional who feels like you're constantly running on empty, Amy helps ambitious women understand burnout, regulate their nervous systems, and build careers that support their lives rather than consuming them.

Learn more or book a consultation: burnoutfreeme.com

If you enjoyed this episode of Burnout-Free Me, make sure you're subscribed so you never miss a conversation about burnout recovery, nervous system health, and creating success without sacrificing your wellbeing.

Leaving a quick review also helps more high-achieving women find the show.

Episode Notes:

If you feel exhausted all the time… even though you’re doing everything “right”… this episode is going to make that make sense.

Because this isn’t about time management or being more disciplined. And it’s not because you’re falling behind.

In this episode of Burnout-Free Me, I’m breaking down why so many high-achieving women feel constantly drained despite being capable, responsible, and on top of their lives… and what’s actually going on beneath the surface.

We’re talking about the hidden cost of chronic stress, how your nervous system adapts to pressure over time, and why “used to it” doesn’t mean “okay.”

If you’ve ever felt like you should have more energy, more motivation, or just be handling things better… this conversation is for you.

This is where we shift from “What’s wrong with me?” to “Oh… this actually makes sense.”

And that shift changes everything.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why feeling exhausted doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong
• How high-achievers unknowingly adapt to unsustainable levels of stress
• The difference between being “used to it” and actually being okay
• Why rest doesn’t always feel restorative (and what that really means)
• How your nervous system keeps you stuck in “go mode” without you realizing it
• The subtle reason you feel behind… no matter how much you do

Meet Amy:

Dr. Amy Grimm is a success and well-being coach, speaker, and veterinarian who helps high-performing professionals lead with clarity, energy, and purpose without sacrificing their well-being.

A former medical director who experienced burnout firsthand, Amy now coaches leaders across industries to recognize the hidden costs of hustle culture and create sustainable success through strategic prioritization and people-first leadership.

She also hosts the Burnout-Free Me Podcast (previously Daring DVM Podcast), a free resource for high-achievers and career professionals who want to live with less stress and create a life of balance, fulfillment, and joy.

Outside of work, Amy and her partner enjoy travel and all things outdoors. You’ll most likely find them on top of a mountain, in the middle of a desert, somewhere underwater, or 100 miles into a ride on their tandem mountain bicycle.

High-achievers love a good plan.

We map out the perfect workout routine. The ideal morning ritual. The healthy habit that will finally help us feel organized, productive, and in control again.

And then… we quit.

Not because we lack discipline or because we don’t care, but because perfectionism quietly turns habit-building into an impossible standard.

In this episode of Burnout-Free Me, Dr. Amy Grimm explores why perfectionism is actually a terrible strategy for creating healthy habits, especially for ambitious professionals who are already carrying a lot of responsibility.

When your brain defaults to all-or-nothing thinking, habits tend to follow a predictable pattern. You start strong with an ambitious plan, life inevitably disrupts it, and your brain decides that if it can’t be done perfectly, it’s not worth doing at all.

That cycle isn’t a motivation problem. It’s a nervous system problem.

When stress narrows your capacity and shrinks your window of tolerance, the rigid plans perfectionists rely on simply stop working. Sustainable habits require a different approach. One that works with your real life, your energy levels, and the reality that high-responsibility careers rarely run on a perfectly predictable schedule.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to shift away from perfectionistic habit building and toward a strategy that actually supports long-term consistency. Amy shares the powerful concept of a minimum baseline habit, how to create a backup plan for chaotic days, and why building habits around your current capacity is the key to making them stick.

This conversation blends nervous system awareness, mindset shifts, and practical habit strategies so you can stop quitting on yourself and start building routines that support your health, energy, and life outside of work.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in the start-stop cycle with healthy habits, this episode will give you a much more sustainable way forward.

• Why perfectionism sabotages healthy habit formation
• How all-or-nothing thinking keeps high-achievers stuck in burnout cycles
• What nervous system capacity has to do with consistency
• How to create a minimum baseline habit that actually sticks
• Why every habit needs a backup plan for real life
• How consistency rewires your brain and widens your window of tolerance

Choose one habit you’ve struggled to maintain.

Instead of focusing on the ideal version, define the smallest version that still counts. Something you can do even on stressful days.

Then decide on a backup version for when life inevitably gets messy.

The goal is not perfection. The goal is continuity.

Small, consistent actions train your brain and nervous system to support the identity you want to build.

If you want to better understand what burnout is actually doing to your brain and nervous system, start with my free resource:

The Burnout Fix A simple guide to help high-achievers stop running on empty and start restoring their energy.

You can download it at: burnoutfreeme.com

If this episode resonated with you, make sure you follow the podcast so you don’t miss future conversations about burnout, nervous system regulation, and creating a life that actually feels good to live.

You can also watch full episodes and additional content on YouTube and explore coaching resources at: burnoutfreeme.com

Many high-achieving women quietly wonder the same thing:

Is it actually possible to have a fulfilling career and a fulfilling relationship?

When you care deeply about your work, carry a lot of responsibility, and want to do things well, it can start to feel like your career and your love life are competing for the same limited energy.

You may find yourself emotionally exhausted at the end of the day, mentally preoccupied with work when you're trying to be present with your partner, or wondering if pursuing success has unintentionally pushed relationships to the side.

In this episode of Burnout-Free Me, Dr. Amy Grimm explores why this happens and why the real issue is often not time management or “balance.”

Instead, the root of the problem often lies in the productivity trap many ambitious women grow up internalizing. When your worth becomes unconsciously tied to achievement and responsibility, work can slowly consume more energy and capacity than you ever intended.

Over time, this affects your nervous system, your emotional availability, and your ability to fully connect with the people you love.

In this conversation, Amy shares how burnout and chronic stress influence intimacy and presence in relationships, why nervous system regulation is essential for connection, and how high-achieving women can build careers that support their lives rather than quietly draining them.

You’ll also hear a real coaching example that shows how shifting your internal experience of work can dramatically improve your relationship without requiring you to sacrifice your career.

This episode is for any ambitious woman who wants success, meaningful relationships, and a life that actually feels aligned.

Amy explores:

• Why high-achieving women often fall into the productivity trap • How unconscious beliefs about worth and achievement affect relationships • Why burnout and chronic stress make emotional connection more difficult • The role your nervous system plays in communication, presence, and intimacy • Why “work-life balance” may not be the right goal • The concept of life-work alignment and how it changes everything • A real coaching example of improving a relationship without leaving a demanding career • Simple shifts that help ambitious professionals reconnect with themselves and their partners

The Burnout Fix A practical tool designed to help high-achieving professionals regulate their nervous system and break free from the productivity trap.

Learn more at: burnoutfreeme.com

Work With Amy

If you're a high-achieving professional who feels like you're constantly running on empty, Amy helps ambitious women understand burnout, regulate their nervous systems, and build careers that support their lives rather than consuming them.

Learn more or book a consultation: burnoutfreeme.com

If you enjoyed this episode of Burnout-Free Me, make sure you're subscribed so you never miss a conversation about burnout recovery, nervous system health, and creating success without sacrificing your wellbeing.

Leaving a quick review also helps more high-achieving women find the show.

“We’re like family here.”

It sounds warm, supportive, and welcoming. But in many workplaces, this phrase can quietly blur boundaries and create pressure to sacrifice more of yourself than is healthy or sustainable.

In this episode, Dr. Amy Grimm explores why the “work family” narrative can contribute to burnout, especially for high-achieving professionals who already tend to overextend themselves. When loyalty, belonging, and identity become tangled up with our jobs, it becomes much harder to recognize when our needs are being pushed aside.

Amy shares how language like this can subtly shape expectations in the workplace, why healthy boundaries are essential for protecting your mental and emotional well-being, and how patterns like perfectionism, people-pleasing, and over-responsibility can keep us stuck in cycles of overwork.

You’ll also learn why having meaningful relationships at work is still important, and how the real goal isn’t distance from colleagues but clarity about roles, expectations, and limits.

If you’ve ever felt pressure to give more than you realistically have to give, or struggled with the guilt of setting boundaries in your career, this conversation will help you rethink what healthy success actually looks like.

By the end of this episode, you’ll understand how recognizing your boundaries and using them intentionally can help you build a career that supports your life instead of consuming it.

• Why the phrase “we’re like family” can create unhealthy workplace dynamics
• How blurred boundaries contribute to burnout
• The role perfectionism and people-pleasing play in overworking
• What cognitive schemas are and how past experiences shape your work patterns
• Why connection at work still matters and how to balance openness with healthy limits
• How understanding your boundaries can transform your work experience

If this episode resonated with you, there are a few ways to continue the conversation:

Join the Burnout-Free Me Newsletter for deeper insights and tools to help you stop running on empty and start building success that actually feels good.

Download The Burnout Fix, a practical tool to help you identify what’s really driving your exhaustion and how to start shifting it.

You can find both at burnoutfreeme.com.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Burnout-Free Me so you never miss a conversation about burnout, nervous system regulation, leadership, and building a life that feels as successful on the inside as it looks on paper.

And if you’ve listened to a few episodes and found them helpful, leaving a review helps more people discover the show.

Thanks for being here.