Navigating Burnout in a Hustle Culture with Garrett Wood
- Savannah Rose Johnson, BA, CLC, RTT.P
- 3 minutes ago
- 36 min read
In this episode of the Eclipse Evolution Podcast, Savannah Rose speaks with Garrett Wood, founder of Gnosis Therapy, about the pervasive issue of burnout, especially in the post-COVID world. They explore the hustle culture, the connection between burnout and imposter syndrome, and the importance of self-compassion and embodiment in personal growth. Garrett shares insights on executive functioning and how it relates to burnout, emphasizing the need for a compassionate approach to health and wellness. The conversation highlights the significance of understanding one's subconscious beliefs and the process of aligning personal well-being with one's values.
For more information about Garrett, please visit the links below.
Website: gnosistherapy.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gnosistherapy/
Stay Connected with Savannah Rose
Website: www.eclipseevolution.com
Podcast Instagram: @eclipseevolutionllc
Savannah's Instagram: @the_savannahrose
YouTube: @the_savannahrose
TikTok: @the_savannahrose
Below is the companion video, timestamps, full transcript, and also available streaming platforms.
Thanks for listening!
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Burnout and Its Impact
03:03 Understanding the Roots of Burnout
05:54 The Connection Between Burnout and Imposter Syndrome
08:58 Exploring the Subconscious Mind
11:53 The Concept of Gnosis and Embodiment
14:41 The Process of Meaning Making and Self-Investment
18:01 Navigating Patterns of Vulnerability and Self-Care
23:21 Protecting Your Peace
24:53 The Four Pillars of Self-Care
26:53 Understanding Executive Functioning and Burnout
30:07 Navigating Expectations and Self-Beliefs
33:30 Assess, Accommodate, Align: A Holistic Approach
36:55 Health Beyond the Gym: Compassionate Practices
43:22 Embracing Humanity and Self-Compassion
Podcast Streaming Platforms:
Companion Video:
Transcript:
Savannah Rose: Hello, hello and welcome to the Eclipse Evolution Podcast. I'm your hostess Savannah Rose. Thank you so much for tuning in. Wherever you are in the world, we're grateful to have you with us today.
And I'm very grateful to introduce a special guest, Mr. Garrett Wood, tuning in from sunny and warm California, I envy you. Thank you for being with us today. I know you're going to have so many beautiful nuggets of wisdom and I just appreciate you taking time to share yourself, to share your mission. And please, if you wouldn't mind, introduce yourself and we can get rolling.
Garrett Wood (00:34.614)
Yeah, thanks for having me here today, Savannah. I'm really excited to share a little bit about what I do. My name's Garrett. I am the founder of Gnosis Therapy. I'm a nationally board certified health and wellness coach. I'm also a clinical hypnotherapist and an executive functioning specialist. And so most of the clients I work out, that I work with are suffering from burnout. That's why they showed up. And it's not their first time. Usually it's their second or third time and they're trying to figure out, okay, the two things I did last time aren't gonna work this time.
I either have more responsibilities in a different place in my life and I need to figure this out because it can't just keep happening. So some of work we do is getting on the deep end and trying to figure out what's really going on for him.
Savannah Rose (01:14.873)
Yeah, absolutely. I love that. As someone who has suffered from burnout to where I was...
unrecognizable like physically I mean talk about head to toe like blistering rash stressor isis like and it was a very awful experience so when I saw it when you reached out and saw that that's one of your specialties it's something that I have covered on this podcast before but feel like haven't really gone in like a deep dive so I'm so glad that you're a specialist in that specifically because I think it's something that
I mean, it has been affecting people for ever, but I think especially post COVID, I've been seeing it a whole lot more as well, just in my industry and with doctors and first responders and just anyone really, I think the fact that we've normalized such a hustle culture is one of the roots behind like that burnout cycle. But I'm curious to hear your thoughts, like what you've noticed.
Garrett Wood (02:13.058)
Yeah, do think that since the World Health Organization came out with their formal definition of what burnout is, as it's like a workplace phenomenon, it's such like a... Usually definitions come much after we've all been experiencing it for a long time, and science and the definitions and the DSM all catch up eventually. But it's really creating a name for an experience that most people have been having. And now you have management study systems that like, I think, do like...
just came out with a study that said 77 % of workers are feeling burnt out and it's even higher for people in leadership positions. So that's the vast majority of people. I think some of it is that work is always on. You used to like clock in and clock out and go home. Now it's wherever you are, you're carrying it with you every moment of the day. So it's a little bit more challenging because there's not these guardrails in place that there used to be in earlier generations.
Savannah Rose (02:50.082)
We
Savannah Rose (03:06.213)
Mm.
That's such a good point. I know that's something I've had to learn is that that boundaries aspect and I think it's something that I would love to share with our younger and like people who are just now entering the workforce listeners. I feel like when I was young I was setting myself up for burnout because I had this notion to prove myself and that was also I think reinforced by a lot of my elders and colleagues of like you gotta like earn your stripes kind of thing of like and my
day like you had like this was just the norm it was expected to be working heinous hours or to be doing just work at the expense of your health and and it's just such a normalized thing I think a lot of my friends in the finance world was we're also experiencing that I know it can be experienced in all types of realms but I remember that being like some of my friends like complaints of like this is just what you got to do as a third year or first year lawyer or whatever it's like but you're dying
That doesn't make sense to me.
Garrett Wood (04:09.141)
Yeah, the 90 plus hour work weeks in finance and law, as a general expectation. And if you can't cut it, then well, it's not for you. And then even in the medical fields, like being an ICU nurse, like the long 16 hour shifts and like residencies going into that. My favorite story about that is John Hopkins is kind of known in the medical world for having their residency program.
Savannah Rose (04:17.551)
right?
Garrett Wood (04:32.333)
And then the model that they created, like, oh, we have the best doctors. This is amazing. So what are they doing for their residents? Like, how do they train them? We need to adopt that and apply it elsewhere. And it seems like a person that led the charge at John Hopkins in the 70s was a phenomenal physician and an awesome trainer and was also addicted to cocaine. And so for his 21 hour, 24 hour, 48 hour shifts, it worked because his drug of choice facilitated that style of effort.
But that's a pretty weird expectation to set up for other people to have to have that type of a habit to be able to function, to get the education, to then go on and become a doctor. So I think we've been setting people up for failure for a long time. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (05:17.871)
Absolutely, yeah, and I think with that just overriding our humanity. I think that's something I've had to, in my own unlearning, in order to not.
I mean, gosh, repeat the burnout cycle like you said a minute ago. Like, that's been just really turning into my rhythms. And I think especially like my rhythms as a woman, because like I go in that circular, like monthly cycle, like my energy is so different. Just wherever you catch me, whatever day you catch me on, my energy is so different. So yeah, I can totally understand that and can relate to that in a lot of ways. I'm curious, like, how have you noticed the relationship with
burnout and imposter syndrome and that kind of, I would say, like anchor of like the mirror of someone's self-worth, I think, and how that influences burnout.
Garrett Wood (06:08.875)
Yeah, I think the easiest way for me to talk about that is if you were in a boat and you were headed somewhere and you're pretty excited to get there and you're putting all your effort into it and you notice that the boat is taking on water. So now you have to divert your attention between moving forward and getting the water out of the boat. But the hard part is, is while you're trying to do those two things and you're like, okay, can I arrive at my destination before the boat sinks? no, we have to do
and then the whole time we're kind of ignoring the crack in the hall that's letting the water sink in in the first place so now we actually have three tasks we have to patch the hole crack we have to get the water out and then we could probably spend some of our energy going to wherever we were trying to arrive and so when you say this idea of like imposter syndrome which is a pretty popular term often it feels like burnout as the result of trying to outwork our imposter syndrome so we have this belief this identity about ourselves
Savannah Rose (07:01.829)
Mm.
Garrett Wood (07:06.081)
whether it's conscious or subconscious, it's this feeling of inadequacy or like a lack of self-worth in some way and then we use our effort to disprove that belief about ourself so if I have this idea that I'm not good enough, I'm not capable, I'm not smart, I'm not whatever the thing is okay great and now I can do all these cool works and everyone's excited for me to work as hard as possible and they're all benefiting from it and appreciating it and I feel good about that but I have to do it at such a rate that it's unsustainable
to try to create this evidence to counteract this belief that I have. And if I'm not consciously aware of that belief, it's like trying to get that buckets of water out of the boat and never patching that hole up. You are going to sink well before you ever arrive. And I think that's what most people that have gone through burnout at least once have felt. If they're feeling it multiple times, it's probably not one crack. It probably is two or three or four or...
They don't have enough of a support system around them that no matter how much effort they're putting in, it's just not a good boat for the waters that they're sailing in.
Savannah Rose (08:08.965)
Mm.
Thank you for that metaphor. That is so rich and I'm such a visual person. So I'm in my mind like my vote. But yeah, I think gosh, it sounds like you were spying on me. My journey, what led me to my burnout experience that I described earlier, because that's exactly how it was for it was. It was, just buckets, if not a spoon. think bucket was generous. I think I just had some spoons. I was like tossing water out, but yeah, absolutely. I think that's such a great way to put it. And you mentioned just like the
Garrett Wood (08:29.825)
Hahaha.
Savannah Rose (08:40.035)
that relationship between our conscious and subconscious. know given that you're a clinical hypnotherapist, gosh, that is so relevant. And I'm trained in my own form of hypnotherapy as well. The role of the subconscious, how would you recommend listeners tune into that voice, like tune into the presence of their subconscious?
Garrett Wood (09:04.064)
So the subconscious shows up whether we want it to or not. It's always there. So anytime you notice like cognitive dissonance, you're like, I know what I want. I know what I need and I know how to do it and I have the skills to do it or I'm willing to learn. And then you still don't find yourself in action. That gap right there is indicative of something going on. And it could be driven by your subconscious beliefs about yourself or feeling or a lack of feeling.
It also could be, you know, sleep, food, nutrition, executive functioning, sensory things. There could be a lot of things going on as well. But if it is driven by that subconscious, the way you can usually hear it is it's a tone of voice. It's a thought. It's a belief that shows up. It's usually a judgment or a criticism. Those are usually there to protect us from putting ourself in harm's way to embarrassing ourselves or putting us in a situation where we could be potentially embarrassed or our needs won't be met.
because when we go in experiences where we feel like we're rejected or not appreciated those end up serving as evidence to reinforce those subconscious beliefs as well so if we work real hard we can be like no see that subconscious belief is false and that feels good but we can also not put ourselves in front of things that are good for us because we're afraid if they don't work out then we're gonna have even more evidence to reinforce that subconscious belief see it is true you're such a whatever that tone is
So sometimes you don't have to tune in. Sometimes you almost have to tune that voice out because it's so loud. It's so critical. It's so challenging to live with.
Savannah Rose (10:37.849)
Mm-hmm. Well said. Well said. And this might be jumping. I swear it relates back to what we're saying. But the title of your practice, I feel like I can never pronounce this word. Gnosis? Is that how you say that? Gnosis. Okay, so you don't pronounce the D. Gnosis. And tell me if I'm wrong, but I feel like when I've studied that archetype,
Garrett Wood (10:52.076)
Yeah, so it's gnosis. The G is silent, so gnosis. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (11:02.437)
I guess that's how I perceive it, that energy that you can learn from. Isn't it like the deep knowing? Isn't that what that means?
Garrett Wood (11:10.35)
100%. Yeah, it's the difference between knowing about something in theory versus the belief and the feeling and the experience of knowing it to be true inside of you. So you can know like, no, like I'm a smart, driven, caring person. Sure, in theory, but then you can also not give yourself the actual meaningful credit of that. And so sometimes you'll get glimpses of those kind of beliefs or feels true in that moment. You're like, that was great. Okay, how do I go get more of that?
And then we start reaching outside of ourselves for tasks, things, achievements, goals. And then every time we achieve one, we get a little bit, but we get like a little bit less every time. So that I think is where it leads back to that imposter syndrome, where we are looking for that feeling, that gnosis, that experience of being that thing, and we're not getting it enough. So then we go and do more and then do more and do more. And each time we're getting less and less and less of it. So we're like, something is wrong here. Maybe it's me.
Savannah Rose (11:59.333)
Good night.
Garrett Wood (12:07.124)
And it's actually not, it's that that belief that you have is like getting in the way of your being able to experience it.
Savannah Rose (12:14.359)
Mm-hmm. Well said, yeah.
That makes so much sense and I brought up the Gnosis because I feel like when I've been studying that archetype, it's been so much as I've been exploring my own embodiment journey like that, like taking the intellectual and making it real and making it like a lived thing. Exactly. And I feel like that's so huge, like to develop that knowing, like in your bones, knowing of like the beliefs that you want to continue to cultivate.
Garrett Wood (12:34.104)
Yeah. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (12:47.001)
well. Because of course we can have beliefs that we, like you said, like know and are reinforced by maybe a negative experience and then that's affecting how we show up. But also like when we are consciously like, I want to integrate this belief, like whether it's like through practicing affirmations or just trying to have an antidote for an unhealthy belief that you want to release, like bringing that from the intellectual space to the embodied space and how that changes so much of your behavior.
I think it's a beautiful process, but I think it's one that isn't talked about enough. Tell me if you've experienced this as a fellow wellness professional and coach. Even I've experienced myself, I see this almost addiction to over-intellectualizing and where people are like, got to keep reading more, I got to keep listening to more podcasts, I got to keep learning because they don't really know it yet. Then it is like this...
Garrett Wood (13:28.504)
Thank
you
Savannah Rose (13:45.893)
like gosh like a rabbit chasing a carrot at the end of the stick cycle in a way. I would love to know your thoughts on the embodiment process.
Garrett Wood (13:54.371)
Yeah, and I'm super guilty of the like always reading wanting to know more like the intellectual curiosity piece and like is that how it fits? That's so cool. That stimulates me. It's exciting. It's interesting to me. But if you don't internalize it, you have to constantly be in that and the more you're into that the less it actually is a chance to embody it. So that does have to coalesce. It has to come together somehow.
I always think of it baking a cake, like you have to have all the ingredients and then have to put them all in the right order and then you have to put it in the oven to come out and have this like, oh, this is what we want here. If you don't do the right order, you don't have the right ingredients, you don't have the oven, the end result is, you know, not something that's as appetizing as you would wish it to be. And so that idea of like getting to the embodiment piece where you experience the knowing and having it be real is just like every other experience. We learn through going through it and having it be real.
in the world around us. The reason why I'm such a fan of hypnotherapy is when you have your eyes closed and you are using your imagination and you are fully experiencing that moment and appreciative of it and present for it, that is a real experience. That is embodiment. A lot of people think hypnosis is really, really, really mysterious and esoteric and scary and frightening or like sexy and scary because it's mysterious too.
We all go through it. It's a natural state of our physiology. So if we're watching a movie and we're like laughing and crying at the movie and we know the actors' names, we know their past partners, we know maybe even the names of their kids at this point, but that doesn't stop us from being lost in that moment with them, with their heart and experiencing it not just with them, through them, but also with the people we're sharing that experience with. That is an experience of hypnosis. That's a state of being present and lost in that moment.
but we don't have to do that just through movies and music. We can do it through our own selves. We have access to that power and it's there at any time. So my favorite part is being able to get into that state and use that state to create an experience where you have that antidote, you have that story or that experience that it went well and you're like, yeah, that was great. Okay, cool. But now we need to go get another one and another one. It's like, no, no, no, no, let's take that one and make it real. Let's get it out of here and put it, you know.
Garrett Wood (16:12.778)
everywhere. Let's live in it a little bit more and expand in it more. And we can do that through repetitions, not just in reality and, you know, IRL, but like actually in our imagination.
Savannah Rose (16:24.005)
We gotta eat that cake that we just made. I know. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And I mean, that's something that is so relevant. And again, like King of the Metaphors, I love that. Like with the cake, for example, I think that that's so important because...
Garrett Wood (16:26.294)
Otherwise, it's just sitting there going to waste, right? Yeah. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (16:41.721)
I mean maybe it's not the most nutritious food but you gotta allow it to nourish you. That's kinda what I tell people with the knowledge. It's just, if it's staying up here, it's just taking up space and just staying in that potential energy kinda realm if you wanna think of it in the physics world. But you gotta take it down and make it actual experience like you said. And whether it's through hypnosis or through a new habit that you're trying to do or even a ritual or whatever it is.
like a real thing, I feel like that's what really then starts to create those new neural pathways. And like your brain is like, this is something that I have meaning behind now. And I think meaning is such a huge driver behind like, how we function, what we believe, how we show up, how we, like all those different kinds of ways of our essence. It goes back to like what we are finding meaning in.
Garrett Wood (17:37.551)
And meaning making is really challenging when you're trying to work on like a personal development journey, when you're trying to work on yourself. Because a lot of the beliefs that we grow up with is about sacrificing your own self for something else or in the pursuit of something else. And we see a lot of that messaging, I think, out there in a lot of different archetypes. Like the warrior archetype is sacrifice yourself for the pursuit of this thing. The maiden is sacrifice yourself for the pursuit of those around you, your innocence for something else.
But when you're choosing to make the effort that it takes to create a different reality for yourself and your experience, you are having to decide like, no, I'm worth investing in, I'm worth taking care of, I'm worth the effort. And it's really challenging because sometimes when you have like a W-2 paycheck, you're like, cool, I work hard, I get this paycheck. It's like apples to apples, right? Maybe not ever enough for how hard you work for how much you're paid for it no matter what, because you're always worth more than they pay you for.
Savannah Rose (18:37.413)
Thank you.
Garrett Wood (18:37.934)
even in that you get AA, AB. When you're working on yourself, it doesn't feel like it shows up immediately. And so there's like that delayed response. have to be like, okay, no, I'm worth working on. I'm putting in the effort and it's worth it for me. And wait, I still have to sit here while that process takes time. Cause you're talking about the new neural pathways. That is a very physiological process. Like how long does it take to heal a bone? How long does it take to heal a cut or a wound or a burn?
It takes time to do those things and it's the same part for getting the new connections in your brain to run that new story, that new belief. And so you have to be patient with that too, which is really interesting.
Savannah Rose (19:18.029)
Absolutely. Yeah, it makes me think I was just talking with one of my best friends a couple days ago about the pathway specifically and she put it here's a metaphor for you. I'll give you one this time. She was saying like if something traumatic is like cutting something like with the machete like sometimes the healing is like trying to cut something with a butter knife like carving a new path with a butter knife and like you said like it does take that patience and I think self-compassion too because I know like even with myself in my own
journey if I'm trying to release an intrusive thought or a negative belief or whatever it is.
I think understanding that that's not a linear process. And sometimes it's not like you said, like A to B or A to A. Like it just, I do this and this is the result and I'm done. It's like, no, this can keep showing up and keep showing up. Even if you feel very like healed or you've done a shit ton of work around something, it can still keep popping up. And then I think that's where like that patience needs to get plugged in, like that self-compassion. And I think like...
forgiveness, not that you've done anything wrong by that showing up, but not beating yourself up over it showing up, but you haven't done enough work. It's like, no, I've done a lot of work. This thing is just...
Showing up and sometimes we don't even always understand why or have to know why I think that's sometimes where I've gotten stuck in my intellectualizing addiction and it's like I'm feeling this thing and I gotta like sit here and sit in it and figure it out and then it'll be better and sometimes it's like No, you can't just let it pass
Garrett Wood (20:54.754)
Yeah, and sometimes by like sitting in it and getting caught on that you're like zooming in and kind of blowing that piece up instead of like letting it, you know, pass sooner than later. But I love that idea of like giving yourself the compassion you need and the patience as you make that process. Because just because you develop those new pathways and they're running and they're working doesn't mean that old one's gone. It just means it may not be getting as much attention, which is a good thing.
and over time it does show up because something in the environment, the experience reminded you of it and sometimes it's nice to be reminded like, wait I used to feel this way so often so frequently I haven't felt this way for sometimes days sometimes months you know maybe years if people are really lucky out there and that's kind of nice too to be able to give yourself a chance to reflect on that change and how often that experience has changed for you versus the other idea of like dang
Savannah Rose (21:31.898)
Yeah.
Garrett Wood (21:49.007)
I've been working on this for 10 years and I'm still having an experience. Of course you are. It's a human experience. That pathway is still there. It's still going to get attention and energy sometimes when you're in a different environment that triggers it. But it's just another chance to remind you of how much more opportunities there are.
Savannah Rose (22:06.533)
Absolutely, yeah. you know reminds me a little bit about like our when we were touching upon burnout specifically because I feel like sometimes I miss with myself and I don't want to like over generalize but in my experience like
I've been more vulnerable to those types of thoughts showing back up again when I'm not rested and like when I'm maybe not like taking care of myself the best or if I'm like hormonal like my hormones are surging and like all my energy is going towards like my body and being like physically like not super in balance. I feel like that's when my brain becomes more vulnerable to those types of thoughts as well. I'm curious like what have your observations been around like whether it's like
own journey or with your clients, like how those things like almost have like patterns when they show up sometimes.
Garrett Wood (22:57.806)
Absolutely. I do think that, you know, in Polyvagal Theory, Stephen Porges and a little bit Dr. Bruce Perry, they talk about this idea of story follows state. So whatever state your body's in, the stories you're telling yourself are going to carry some of the feelings of that. So if you're in a stressed out state in your body, meaning like your sensory needs aren't being met, your interoception needs, meaning like food, you have to go to the bathroom and you can't. So that's like distressing too.
You're in a situation that doesn't feel comfortable, you're in stress with someone in your interpersonal relationship. When you're in that state, it's distressing to your system, your nervous system, and so you're going to be in a more heightened state. And so now when you go back and think about yourself, others in the world, it's going to be more challenging to think about them in a calm, relaxed, restoring, compassionate way. And that's true about yourself, it's also true for other people. And so it really is interesting, like how important it is to kind of protect your peace.
But the idea is not to like not be that man on the mountain with a long beard, just zen'd out all by themselves. That person probably has more than enough zen for everybody to share, but they're in an environment where they don't need it as much versus everyone else operating in the real world. Family, kids, bosses, siblings, whatever that may be for them. They actually have more interactions that can cause some distress to them. So making sure that you are really compassionate with yourself when you're going through all of that stuff that...
hey maybe this story that I'm telling myself right now isn't so much the truth maybe it's a reflection of the things that I'm experiencing maybe I do need to take a nap maybe it is time to go and eat something maybe I haven't had water for too long maybe this shirt is too itchy and I didn't cut that tag out whatever the thing is for whoever you are in that moment
those little things really do make a difference. And they kind of cloud our ability to access anything that does sound like calm, comfortable, and non-judgmental.
Savannah Rose (24:52.581)
Yeah.
Savannah Rose (25:01.605)
For sure, yeah. You mentioned, I call them just the four pillars of self care, but yeah, the water, food, rest, and then I use expression as one. think if we're not having enough energy output, whether it's through exercise or something creative or whatever it is, getting some of that flow to happen, we're again, just kind of sitting and absorbing and internalizing whatever it is, it's not going anywhere.
ourselves the chance to like let that flow and move through us I think is important and I'll joke with my clients I'll tell them like I'm not trying to patronize you but we really are at the end of the day just a bunch of big babies like we really are like because if you think about babies they can't regulate themselves and it really is like when they're crying they gotta like get changed like that tag is itchy that diapers wet or they're hungry they're thirsty they need a nap and like we really are at our core
Garrett Wood (25:54.488)
Yeah. Yep.
Savannah Rose (25:58.052)
like so simple and I think that's also a beautiful thing. Like it doesn't have to be like going on a huge pilgrimage to figure ourselves out and care for ourselves. I mean that is a beautiful thing too but sometimes it really is just about honoring our nature as humans and allowing that to be a simple thing.
Garrett Wood (26:16.886)
absolutely and if you get the simple things first sometimes that's enough to give you i always think about like i don't know sometimes when i like throw my sweats in the washer and then the dryer i forget to take the like drawstring knot out and now it's been washed and dried and now it's a really really tight knot and you're just like okay and you have to wiggle a little bit wiggle a little bit wiggle a little bit wiggle and then eventually it all kind of unravels but sometimes when you take care of those little simple things that you talked about
Sleep, nutrition, getting in a movement of flow, state, releasing some of that stuff. That is the precursor to having the bigger, deeper insights even. Like, you may not even need to get them. These little things may be enough to let it unravel itself.
Savannah Rose (27:01.605)
Yeah.
I certainly can attest to that. Like I know for me, like I am unwell if I have not had enough sleep. Like that is my big thing for me. I need a lot of rest and yeah, yesterday I was just having one of those days. I started crying when my partner gave me a chicken sandwich. I was just like, this is so bad. And he's like, you should rest. I'm like, okay. But yeah, just, that's just how simple we can be sometimes. But I'm curious, this is jumping to another topic that I just wanted to pick your brain about. Cause I know you also,
our specialist in executive functioning. I'm curious, like, what has been your observation with executive functioning's role in embodiment or in burnout and those types of other areas that you touch upon?
Garrett Wood (27:47.277)
When you're burned out, your ability to express executive function is pretty challenging. So everybody's got a little bit of difference in the parts of their own executive function that's easier for them to access than others. Some people that get a project and they're like, okay, I'm gonna get started on this right away. And they like just hit the ground running and that like task initiation is so strong for them that they're like, where is everybody else at? I thought we all got the project on the same day. I'm almost done. But that same person may have a really hard time.
crossing the finish line. They may need help from everybody else. The reason why they're looking around being like, where is everybody's? Because they need them at the end for that collaborative effort to get across the line. Other people are like, oh, that deadline's weeks away. Oh, I'm not even going get started. It's not important right now. And that's kind of like the most obvious difference that we see in addictive functioning. But there's like 11 other different functions of that as well. And so knowing what your unique strengths are across those working memory, task initiation,
It really makes a big difference when you're doing group projects. Because if you have an event coming up and you're, you know, whether it's friends coming over to the house and like you're going to host a dinner party with your partner, or whether it's a big project at work, everyone have different styles of working. And sometimes they can clash and sometimes they can collaborate. But a lot of interpersonal conflict and frustrations with other people on those projects come from the differences in how they choose to show up and leaning into their strengths.
But the worst one with burnout is when you're in an environment where you're expected to perform a certain way at a certain time and there's no variation or allowance of that difference and you have to consistently perform and it's not aligned with how you naturally perform. That gap of performance that you're consistently doing is like a consistent drain on your ability to like have those energies. You can never get filled. So the longer you're in that environment, the more dangerous it is.
Savannah Rose (29:38.406)
Yeah, absolutely, especially if kind of tying into like that burnout piece as well like or I guess maybe
Well, yeah, burnout and also like that self belief or just like the beliefs that we carry about ourselves and maybe those motivating factors that lead to burnout is like if we've come in to like maybe a new role and we set the tone for ourselves of like being the overachiever and then it just feels very uncomfortable and maybe we even receive feedback from our superiors or team of like, you're not doing as much and then that can like really muscle this. I know that's at least the case with me. I'm totally sharing like a personal experience
where it was like coming in guns blazing and then that's I kind of did that to myself in some ways because like I was operating from that place of trying to prove myself and then when I did start to try to take care of myself like work normal hours and not like work during my lunch break or answer stuff on the weekends I was immediately met with like Savannah like you're not doing as much anymore and then it was kind of like what you're saying a while ago of like
how much people benefit from like that over giving. It kind of turned into this like narrative of like not just like where did you go or like what's happening to you but like we want more of that but we don't want to pay you for more of that. We just want more of what you were doing and what you're willing to do with this amount of money and now that you're going back to your job description it's just like a whole a whole messy thing. Yeah. So I feel like it's not it's it's it's pretty interesting how like
Garrett Wood (31:10.99)
Yeah.
Savannah Rose (31:15.813)
there's just so many moving parts that can lead to those behaviors.
Garrett Wood (31:19.468)
Yeah. And some of it's like setting up expectations and cultures that aren't aligned with our like natural physiology. Like you were talking about the cycles as you go through a month long process. And if your expectation is being set on the month where you're like kicking butt and taking names, like in that week where you're like really feeling great. And we set the expectation of what counts as like quality or good enough work at that level. Well, that's not aligned with your natural physiology. And so then we had to go through a natural rhythm.
we're in that dip now we have that gap between what you've set normal performance as versus what is normal for you actually that week and now we're being held to like an unfair standard so sometimes people go okay well what's my lowest performance if i'm like not well rested i'm not well fed i am in a part of the cycle in a dip and like my energy or my attention to detail or whatever that ends up feeling or being expressed as you okay let's set the bar there and people are like no no i can't set the bar low
That's not, no, that's not what an overachiever does. That's not what a driven, caring, passionate, caring person does. It's like, well, we're all gonna have a bad day. We're all gonna maybe have things that show up in our personal lives that distract us from work where work isn't the most important thing, nor should it be. That's pretty normal and natural for most of us. But because we have this expectation of like wanting to set the bar so high that it almost becomes impossible to meet it.
We might do that to ourselves, but once we've done it, like you said, now the expectation not just lives in your own mind. You've shared it with other people where they have that expectation of you and they're holding you to that standard. Even as you're trying to give yourself a break, they're not allowing it. And that's really challenging too, yeah.
Savannah Rose (33:01.347)
Absolutely. I'm curious, like when it comes down to your practice and working with others, is there like a specific kind of, maybe not specific, but what would you say is the range of like what you help people with? mean, beyond your specialties, but I guess like my question is more like, if you had like...
I guess the key points of advice for our listeners, maybe people who would want to tap into you for a session or to work with you as a professional, what would you say you like to hold people through in these different types of topics that we've been discussing today?
Garrett Wood (33:40.985)
Yeah, so a lot of, like we talked about, there's a lot of different moving factors with us. And the broader we go with interventions, they can work, but typically they take more time. So if we're taking like Advil and Tylenol for like a little specific ache and pain that we have in our neck and our shoulder, the way that works is it works in our entire bloodstream. And so it's not so focused on those two areas. If you show up to like a massage and you're like, I just want you to work on my neck. And they're like, well,
I'm trained to do everything. So I'm to touch your pinky toes and your pinkies and everything in between. And you're like, yeah, but I really just, it's just this part right here. So that always kind of frustrated me. So I try not to perpetuate something like that in my work, in my practice. Instead, we'd go through a really thorough assessment process, kind of across like the big pillars of wellbeing to get to the specific enough intervention to show up.
Is it subconscious beliefs that driving you? Is it sensory differences? Is it your attachment system and how that shows up in interpersonal relationships with other people? Is it a misalignment between your values and an organization's values? Is it a difference between your executive functioning strengths and the expectations of the work around you? What is actually the biggest driver or drivers that are slowing you down and making it harder to be you?
And then we go, okay, great, let's focus in on those. What's the easiest way to accommodate your unique nervous system's needs, even in this environment that there's so many things you can't control? What are the things we can do right now? And then once we have that, how much easier is it to be you? Okay, great, now that we have that extra little bit, what can we do to make it even easier moving forward? And so it's kind of this like assess, accommodate, align process.
Savannah Rose (35:23.225)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (35:28.397)
I love that. Thank you. I feel like you put that so beautifully because yeah, absolutely I think you're so right like there's so much I don't know if like agenda is the right word but I think there's so important to like be able to meet people where they're at as a care provider and to Assess so you can have a deeper understanding but also like allow them to have the
like the dignity and like the autonomy to decide what they need as well. And then if y'all together come to like a realization of like, this is something deeper here, I think that that's beautiful. But I think it's a testament to like your professionalism. And I think also just like your ethical heart space too, to allow that person to be like the leader in their recovery and like their care too. I think that's really important.
Garrett Wood (36:18.614)
Yeah, well people are experts in their own lives and their own existence and I'm just an assistant to be like, okay, cool. Let's talk about it. Cause sometimes I don't know how good you are at mental math. I can get to like a couple of digits before I'm like, let's get the calculator out. Let's get some extra support here. Let's make this easier. And if you're in a dysregulated state in your own nervous system and that story you're telling yourself is elevated.
Savannah Rose (36:32.367)
Yeah.
Right.
Garrett Wood (36:41.634)
You do need to borrow someone else's regulated nervous system and be able to reflect those things back and forth so you can actually get some insights outside of your own mind, just like pulling out the calculator to do that math. It's an assistant tool. That's all in there is to help assist people in their own process.
Savannah Rose (36:56.471)
Mm-hmm. That's so important. I'm curious, like, because you're a health and wellness coach, like, what kind of aspects of health do you touch upon?
Garrett Wood (37:05.902)
Yeah, so a lot of health comes down to doing things in a way that's not, I think, fetishized is a nice way of summarizing. So you can go to the gym and lift all the weights and you can do it in a really healthy or really harmful way. And it doesn't matter how much stronger you're getting necessarily if it counts as one or the other because you can be doing out of a place of shame, blame, and guilt where you're like, I'm punishing myself to be a person that's worth loving.
One of my biggest pet peeves I see a lot in like a lot of my male clients and They're like dues paid I did it I did the hard thing now I can go be a real person because I like have worked really hard and I can and that idea is really challenging for me because it I think it perpetuates an idea of I'm not okay. I'm gonna punish myself and now I've earned the right to be whatever so maybe they're like going to the gym lifting weights running
and then they're like, okay, now I can eat this like really tasty and not very caloric nutrient pizza and I can have 10 slices instead of three slices and then I'm gonna go punish myself again to get by this thing and now we're just stuck in a cycle where they're not really appreciative of themselves nor are they treating themselves with care nor are they being compassionate with themselves and so it's this like shame blame guilt cycle that keeps them stuck in not appreciating more of who they are and wanting to lean into that
If you're running because you enjoy it, that's great. If you're running because you're trying to burn calories so you can eat pizza so that way you can not hate yourself the next day because you did the running so you can eat the pizza, we're in trouble because that is like that hamster wheel of like, hmm, distress that your nervous system is under because it's perpetuating that like not love, not care, not concern, not compassion or support for yourself.
Savannah Rose (38:57.701)
That's such a great way to put it, as far as your lens and exploring health from that.
like a place of true self love, really. Because like you said, you can do these similar behaviors, like working out, running, whatever it is. But I think the overall benefits are just beyond imaginable, really, when it comes from that place of self love. Because yes, you could go the punishment route, or like the I gotta do this to be good enough, or to be lovable, or attractive enough, or whatever it is.
operating from that almost like lack mentality of this is something that I gotta do to earn what's like really my birthright essentially. And then yeah maybe you'll achieve a great aesthetic or like an aesthetic that like is maybe like...
improvement, but I don't think like you'll ever really get to see it. Like it won't be like an embodied thing. You won't really get to have that glow that comes with it. Cause I think the most attractive people are the happy ones. And I even with myself, like
when I was on my own journey of fitness, when I was a teenager and started modeling and those kind of things, I was very much in that place of I gotta work out and get skinny so I can be good enough for my agent so I don't get bitched out in my next whatever, so I can get this audition or whatever it is. And I don't think I ever really glowed, whereas now I work out.
Savannah Rose (40:28.673)
and do the types of movements, whether it's yoga or whether it's weight lifting, depending upon what I need energetically and doing it just because I want to show up for myself in that way. And it's amazing how not only has my body transformed and maintained in a way that I find attractive, but I feel more like myself and I feel more attractive and happy because it's not from that place of self-deprecation, but I'm doing this from that place of self-love. So I think you make such a good point with that.
interesting to hear like the male perspective as well because yeah I think I have I don't work with male clients anymore but when it comes down to like what I've observed in the past like there definitely is like that common narrative of like I got to do this to be worthy of the girls are gonna do this to like be able to stand as tall as my friends or whatever it is like there it can be kind of not just competitive but
I feel like I don't know how to verbalize it, but just it comes from like that place of I mean that belief of not feeling like you're enough really
Garrett Wood (41:35.663)
or that you don't matter or that you're not worthy, right? And so if I'm not worthy and I don't matter and I'm not enough, okay, maybe there's something at the gym that I can do that'll make me feel different about those things. And I do think it can be a confidence builder, because if you show up in the gym, you couldn't get stronger, it's just a matter of time. But if you're doing it out of, there's like an old late night infomercial and it was for like,
some food plan where it would show up in a big box and it was like freeze-dried food and he would just eat it and the tagline for the quote that like flashed across the page was like my wife thinks i'm less disgusting than i used to be and that was like the sell for it and i just if you're doing all of this to be less disgusting versus more of who you already are and want to continue to celebrate being more of we're not in like a healthy frame
Savannah Rose (42:25.541)
Yeah.
Garrett Wood (42:30.86)
where in like, it might be helpful in that like, you know, your statins might look different, your cholesterol might look different, but it's not gonna be healing and it's not gonna be healthy. And it does take a lot of discipline and willpower to be doing it from that place. And if you're having a bad day or a bad week or a bad month, that's when those practices and rituals and habits become really challenging to continue to do because you're...
not coming from a place where your well-being is like very generative, you're having a bad day, you have other stuff going on, and then you don't have the discipline and the willpower because you shouldn't in those moments. And if that ritual requires all of that, because it's coming from a place of blame and shame and guilt, you're not gonna do it. And so you'll see people make a lot of progress and then drop off and a lot of progress and drop off because they're riding that wave of that change that is normal and natural, but because the...
Practice doesn't come from compassion and celebration and excitement and encouragement. It's so overwhelming to them that it becomes so challenging to be able to stay consistent.
Savannah Rose (43:35.834)
Mm.
That's such good point. think you're so right. Cause I know like when you're operating from that place of, of self love and like having that be the foundation to whether it's like building a new habit or like starting a new regimen or whatever it is. Cause we, it takes time to get consistent with those things. We sometimes have days where we don't want to do it. Yeah. And then I think if like that self compassion is, is woven into that practice when we do have those days where maybe we're like not at level 10,
Garrett Wood (43:54.456)
so much time. Yeah.
Savannah Rose (44:06.597)
or whatever it is that we don't like have to start from zero because we're like beating ourselves up like, I'm so this or that, because I didn't do this one day or I didn't operate at this place or whatever it is. Like I think it helps fuel the sustainability as well as like the overall benefits that come from developing that new practice or doing that behavior and so forth. So really good point. It's so interesting how, again, just like those little roots that we can like plant within ourselves can bring us so much fruit and so many different
ways, whether it's through the workforce or working out or just how we show up for ourselves on a day to day basis and our self care and taking naps. I think that's a really beautiful thing.
Garrett Wood (44:48.376)
can be as easy as taking a nap or a few breaths or just taking a moment to like get up and take a few steps. And we do fetish size working out and being healthy and we're like, gotta do it all or I gotta do the perfect one or I have to do this. And a lot of the times that's that intellectual is getting stuck in that intellectualization process where we want, if we're gonna put an effort and then we know it's gonna be hard and it's not always gonna be easy, we wanna make sure we're doing the right perfect thing.
but because we're people, we change. The perfect thing for you today is not gonna be the perfect thing for you next week or the week after. And so setting yourself up to make sure you have enough grace for yourself and compassion to ride out those highs and lows, you're not a machine. It's just not, don't expect yourself to be one. You're being such a jerk if you expect yourself to perform like a machine does.
Savannah Rose (45:36.343)
Yes, well said. I think that there's not just compassion woven into embracing our humanity, but I mean, it's kind of like what we're here to do is to be a human. At least that's why we're in this meat suit. I got this furry guy right here. He's here to be a cat and walk across my keyboard while I'm trying to record him meow. I don't know if you heard him, but if he's...
Garrett Wood (45:49.454)
You
Garrett Wood (45:53.57)
Thanks.
Garrett Wood (45:57.581)
Just a little bit.
Savannah Rose (45:58.723)
Yeah, he's not doing cat stuff. It's like, what are you even doing, buddy? yeah, absolutely. Well, Garrett, I've enjoyed this conversation so much. It's been so refreshing and it's just so good to hear of other people operating from this space that you're operating from and with the intention that you have. And I would love for people to be able to connect with you. Where can they find you if they want to work with you and learn more about you?
Garrett Wood (46:02.862)
Mm-hmm.
Garrett Wood (46:23.584)
Yeah, so if they're super professional and they want to be continuing to do that, they can find me on LinkedIn at Gnosis Therapy. They can follow me on Instagram at Gnosis Therapy or they can shoot me an email or jump on my website, also gnosistherapy.com.
Savannah Rose (46:35.877)
I'll include the links in the description so y'all can just scroll on down and find that and reach out to him and gain even more wisdom. But Garrett, thank you so much for being with me today. I really enjoyed this conversation.
Garrett Wood (46:48.59)
Thanks for having me, it was so fun.
Savannah Rose (46:50.924)
Amazing and for all of y'all who tuned in today, thank you for your time your attention and for being on this journey with us This is Eclipse Evolution special guest to Garrett Wood and I'm Savannah Rose Thank you so much. Please subscribe if you want to hear more conversations like this But until next time you take care of yourself and bye for now.