You’re Not Burned Out, You’re Over Identified

If you look successful on the outside but feel trapped on the inside, this episode will likely feel uncomfortably familiar.

Many high functioning women describe themselves as burned out. Tired. Overwhelmed. Drained. But burnout is often a surface explanation that hides something deeper. In this episode, I offer a different lens. One that moves away from productivity, rest, and self care, and toward identity.

This is not a conversation about doing less. It is a conversation about who you have been required to be.

Over identification happens when a role you once needed for safety, belonging, or stability becomes the primary way you relate to yourself and the world. The responsible one. The strong one. The capable one. The one who holds it together. These identities often form early, work very well for a long time, and are socially rewarded. From the outside, life looks fine. Even impressive.

Internally, something feels tight.

In this episode, we explore why rest alone does not resolve this kind of exhaustion, why slowing down can feel uncomfortable or even threatening, and why so many women feel confused by the question, “What do I actually want?”

We talk about identity not as a personality trait, but as a nervous system strategy. A way of staying safe. And we look at what happens when growth outpaces the identity that once held everything together.

This episode is not motivational. It is not prescriptive. And it is not about fixing yourself. It is about understanding why feeling trapped does not mean something is wrong with you. It often means something is ready to change.

If you have ever felt like you should be grateful for the life you have, yet quietly exhausted by it, this conversation is for you. If you have tried rest, mindset work, or self awareness and still feel the same pull to perform, this episode will help you understand why.

This is identity work. Quiet. Grounded. And deeply relieving when it clicks.

If this episode gives language to something you have been feeling but could not explain, and you want to explore that work more deeply, you can connect with me or book a private call here:https://app.paperbell.com/checkout/packages/106534