Why Nervous System Health Is the Missing Piece of Leadership & Well-Being
You’ve likely heard it today: “I’m fine.”
Many professionals are quietly exhausted, anxious, or emotionally disconnected. They mask their actual state to meet the demands of high performance.
This pattern isn’t a weakness or a lack of resilience. It’s a biological response—an overloaded nervous system in survival mode.
In my upcoming book, Holistic Vagus Nerve Reset, I share a powerful truth. To carry out our functions and lead well, we must understand and care for our nervous systems. Consistent performance and support for our teams need this understanding.
What Is Masking?
Masking is the unconscious habit of hiding our emotions to appear calm, agreeable, or capable, especially in professional environments. Many high-achievers use masking to cope with stress, uncertainty, and overwhelm.
From a physiological perspective, masking often signals a fawn or freeze response. These are states in which the nervous system tries to maintain safety by avoiding conflict. It also attempts to appease others or shut down emotionally.
When this pattern goes unaddressed, it can lead to:
- Chronic stress and burnout
- Emotional numbness or heightened reactivity
- Disconnection from intuition and empathy
- A decline in creativity, focus, and innovative thinking
Why the Workplace Needs a Nervous System Reset
Corporate culture has long rewarded “push-through” behaviour. We’ve built systems on output, urgency, and efficiency, but often at the expense of regulation, presence, and well-being.
Work-life balance took years to gain traction. Now, we’re seeing the need for the next shift: nervous system literacy as a leadership skill.
- Calm, emotionally attuned leaders make better decisions.
- Regulated teams collaborate more effectively.
- Sustainable performance starts from within.
How to Support Nervous System Health at Work
Here are three practical nervous system resets I share in my book that anyone can integrate into the workday:
1. Grounded Breath Reset
A 2-minute breathing technique to signal safety to the vagus nerve.
- Inhale for four counts, exhale for 8. Hand on heart or belly. Repeat.
- This simple act shifts you from a state of fight-or-flight into one of calm focus.
2. “Name It to Tame It” Pause
When tension rises, pause and internally name what you’re feeling.
- “This is pressure.” “This is a worry.” Then breathe. Labelling the emotion reduces its intensity and invites regulation.
3. Neck Tilt Vagus Activation
You can do a quick somatic reset at your desk with a simple exercise. Gently tilt your head to one side. Hold the stretch for about 30 seconds while breathing slowly. Then, repeat on the other side. This simple movement helps activate the cervical branch of the vagus nerve, which supports relaxation and emotional regulation.
What Organizations Can Do
It’s not just about individual tools—it’s about cultural permission to slow down, feel, and reset. Here are simple ways leaders and HR teams can foster this:
- Schedule 10–15 minute buffers between meetings to allow nervous system recovery
- Start internal meetings with simple check-ins or 1-minute grounding rituals.
- Model emotional honesty at the leadership level
- Train HR professionals in nervous system literacy to support sustainable well-being.
- Create calm zones, also known as “reset corners,” in both physical and virtual workplaces.
The Bottom Line
If we want to move beyond burnout, we must create workplaces where people feel safe being themselves. People should not feel pressure to be who they think they need to be to survive.
Nervous system regulation isn’t just wellness—it’s wisdom. It’s the foundation of effective leadership, team resilience, and long-term performance.
Want to Learn More?
My upcoming book, Holistic Vagus Nerve Reset, offers a science-based, heart-centred roadmap. It helps to regulate stress. It also restores emotional energy and reconnects with your inner calm. Message me directly for an advanced reader copy.
Whether you’re a leader, HR professional, or someone silently powering through, this work is for you.
Let’s stop masking and start regulating. Together.
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