I’ve been a little quiet for most of this year for the most beautiful reason. In October we welcomed our first baby into the world. Pregnancy, birth, and these first weeks of motherhood have stretched me, softened me, humbled me, and expanded me in ways I’m still learning how to put into words.
Lately, I’ve been reflecting on how much pregnancy and motherhood mirror burnout recovery, and how both journeys invite us to slow down, surrender, and rebuild our sense of self from the inside out.
For years, I’ve guided dental professionals through wellness, stress resilience, and nervous system healing. Nothing has taught me more about embodiment, rest, and rebirth than the journey into motherhood itself.
It is humbling.
It is raw.
It is not linear.
And it has shown me that healing, whether postpartum or post-burnout, is not about getting back to who we were. It is about becoming someone new.
Below, I’m sharing more about my birth story, what these first five weeks have taught me, and how profoundly this journey mirrors the practices I teach. I hope these reflections support you, whether you are navigating motherhood, burnout, or simply a season of transformation.
The Birth That Prepared Me for Everything That Came After
I spent my entire pregnancy learning everything I could about physiologic birth. I learned how to trust the body’s wisdom, how to prepare my mind and nervous system, and how to create the most supportive environment possible for me and our baby girl.
My vision was a natural and unmedicated home birth with my husband, my mom, our midwife, and our doulas. I trained for it like both a marathon and a sacred initiation,
• adjusting my workouts
• practicing breathwork
• meditating daily
• birth rehearsals
• mindset and nervous system preparation
I thought I was preparing for birth. Looking back, I was preparing for everything that came after.
Zita’s birth was not the fast and peaceful water birth I imagined.
It was something far greater.
It became a masterclass in surrender, endurance, intuition, and partnership.
Birth changed me.
It taught me that control and trust can coexist. Pregnancy and birth revealed what feminine resilience truly is: the balance between strength and softness, control and trust, preparation and letting go.
So much of what I teach about the nervous system, burnout recovery, and embodiment came alive for me through this birth. It reminded me that the body is wise, intuition is medicine, and transformation is rarely tidy. It is always sacred.
Surrendering Control
Birth taught me that you cannot think your way through transformation. You have to feel your way through.
Postpartum has expanded that lesson every single day.
At five weeks postpartum, I am still learning that I cannot control my hormones, my energy, or my physical body the way I used to. The emotional and mental waves were much bigger than I expected. Some days I felt strong, and other days I felt completely undone.
Burnout recovery mirrors this same experience.
You cannot force your way back to wellbeing. You must loosen your grip, soften the edges, and trust the process.
Control is not the path. Surrender is.
Recalibrating the Nervous System
Both motherhood and burnout recovery create a full-body nervous system transformation.
After birth, the recalibration is intense. Hormones shift. Identity shifts. Sleep looks different. Emotions sit closer to the surface.
For weeks, my body was more sore than I ever imagined. I relied heavily on my husband and my parents to stand up, to eat, to shower, and to rest. Letting go of independence was uncomfortable at first, but it created the conditions for healing.
Emotionally, the waves felt big and unpredictable.
I felt anxious wondering how I would manage once the help was gone.
But slowly, by trusting the process and trusting myself, my system began to settle.
Burnout recovery works the same way.
You return to safety through consistent, foundational habits.
My current practices include:
• nourishment through whole foods
• morning sunlight
• yoga nidra and short meditations
• gentle, intuitive movement
• awareness and self-compassion during emotional waves
• honest communication with family
• grounding instead of pushing
• honoring my limits
• time in nature
• reduced screen time
• finding joy in everyday routines
• focusing on abundance instead of scarcity
Every one of these practices is nervous system medicine.
Motherhood and burnout both require nervous system literacy.
Reconnecting with the Feminine
Pregnancy, birth, and postpartum pull you directly into the feminine. It is a place of intuition, rest, flow, and emotional honesty.
During pregnancy and birth, I learned to trust my body in ways I never had before.
Postpartum is teaching me to trust my intuition, my pacing, and the signals my inner world sends.
Burnout recovery is the same return to the feminine.
It invites you to shift from masculine to feminine, doing to being, from forcing to feeling, from pushing to allowing.
Both journeys show us that healing does not come from hustling. It comes from softening.
Receiving Support
Support is not optional in motherhood or burnout recovery.
It is the foundation of healing.
These past five weeks showed me how often I resisted being cared for. Once I allowed myself to receive help, I healed more quickly. My nervous system settled. My emotions felt less overwhelming. I regained my strength faster.
Postpartum has taught me that support does not weaken us.
Support strengthens us.
Burnout recovery is no different.
Isolation accelerates exhaustion.
Connection provides relief.
You are not meant to heal alone. It's okay to ask for help.
5. Rebirth and Integration
Postpartum is a rebirth for the mother just as much as it is for the child.
At five weeks postpartum, I feel like I am standing in the doorway of a new identity.
I am not who I was, and I am not yet who I am becoming.
Burnout recovery carries the same energy.
There is a shedding, a softening, and a rebuilding that takes time.
Neither journey is about returning to an old identity.
Rebirth is the integration of all the versions of ourselves.
What This Season Is Teaching Me
Through pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, I have learned that wellness is not about perfect balance. It is about harmony.
It is about honoring the season you are in and meeting yourself with compassion.
It is about rebuilding trust in yourself through small, steady moments of care.
This is the wellness I wish for all of us, especially those who care for others and carry emotional weight that is rarely seen.
A Gentle Invitation
If you are craving space to slow down, reconnect, and restore your nervous system, I invite you to join me at one of my upcoming retreats in 2026.
It is a few days to breathe again.
To be supported instead of being the one who supports.
To rest deeply.
To reconnect with your intuition.
To step out of constant doing and return to being.
Expect nourishing food, grounding practices, meaningful conversations, and a space designed for true restoration.
Simply reply to this email to learn more or reserve your spot.
Closing Reflection
Whether you are navigating early motherhood, burnout, or a season of transformation, may you remember this:
You do not need to return to your old self.
You are becoming someone new, someone more present, more grounded, and more whole.
That is the true art of healing.
