Survival mode is a place you visit.Not somewhere you live.
Nervous system coaching for people who are tired of feeling anxious, stressed or shut down. I help you spend less time stuck in survival mode, and more time feeling like yourself.
Book a free clarity callPCC, International Coaching Federation Over 1,000 one-to-one coaching sessions worldwide Featured in ELLE
Who I work with
Whichever of these you are, or all of them, the common thread is a nervous system that’s been in survival mode so long it has started to feel normal.
What being stuck in survival mode feels like.
Tap the ones that sound familiar.
Stress isn’t the problem.
Stress without recovery is.
Pick the one that matches how you feel.
Jittery, jangly, wound up, ready to snap. This is your brain preparing you for a fight that isn’t coming, and spending energy you don’t need to spend.
Name it
Name what you feel as precisely as you can, even silently. “I’m on edge because I don’t feel heard” gives your brain far more to work with than “I’m stressed.” A precise word helps your brain work out what you actually need.
Move it
Do something your body would only do if it felt safe: a brisk walk, a long exhale, shaking out your hands. It gives your brain fresh evidence that you’re okay, so it can stop preparing for danger.
Notice the return
Pay attention to what brings you back, and do more of it. Each time, your brain learns a little more about what safety feels like, so over time the way back gets shorter.
Numb, flat, heavy, nothing left. This is your brain conserving energy because it predicts the demands are more than you can meet, often after a long stretch of pushing through. You don’t need to force yourself out of it. Small and gentle works better than pushing harder.
Name it
Notice it without judgement: “I feel flat and far away right now.” Shutdown is your brain protecting your resources, not a failing.
Start small
Give your body something simple that restores it: rest, food, water, daylight, a few minutes outside. Small things add up.
Connect lightly
Spend a little time with one person who feels easy to be around. Send a text, or sit with someone without having to talk. Connection without pressure.
What changes when your nervous system is more flexible.
Less time in survival mode frees you to live more authentically. Here's what you can expect to change.
A mind that can finally settle.
- Fewer spirals and 3am overthinking
- A clearer head, day to day
- Trust in your own judgement again
The science: Short bursts of stress can sharpen you. It's being stuck in stress that wears down focus, planning and flexible thinking. As your system settles, that capacity comes back.
More energy, and it lasts.
- Rest that actually restores you
- Fewer days running on adrenaline
- Bouncing back from hard days faster
The science: When stress doesn't switch off, stress hormones such as cortisol stay raised and sleep suffers. When your system can recover, sleep and energy follow.
Steady under pressure, at your best.
- Sharper decisions when the stakes are high
- Hard conversations addressed clearly and confidently
- Performance that holds up under pressure
The science: Under constant stress, people fall back on habit and speed instead of considered judgement. A steadier system gives you the pause to choose.
Moving forward, together or apart.
- Patience that lasts into the evening
- The capacity to stay with discomfort, instead of reacting to it
- A bridge, a boundary, or both
The science: Nervous systems pick up each other's cues of safety or threat. We co-regulate, and we co-dysregulate. Understanding your own helps you recognise when someone else feels unsafe, without excusing it.
You'll see the change, not just feel it: a short check-in at the start, halfway and end tracks your recovery, energy and how much choice you feel under pressure.
My path here wasn't linear, and that's what makes my work powerful.
I started my career as a producer in the media and creative industries, running production teams and building departments. In 2017 I retrained as a personal and business coach, and in 2019, after seeing the difference nervous system work made in my own life, I trained in that too.
I work with individuals and organisations, always with the same goal: to help people feel safe enough to thrive.
Read my storyHow we work together.
For individuals
Coaching for you
For when survival mode has become your normal, at work, at home, or both.
- The 90-minute ResetA quick course correct, in one session
- The 6-week ProgrammeDeeper, lasting change, fitted around work and home
For organisations
Coaching for your people
For leaders, partnerships and teams stuck in survival mode, and the conflict, burnout and wrong decisions that follow.
- Leader ProgrammeOne leader, six weeks
- Relationship ResetTwo or three people, eight weeks
- Coach in ResidenceOngoing, on site or online
What clients say.
Esther has worked with Global regularly over the past year, coaching around 100 Globallers ranging from account managers to senior leaders. She has helped leaders and their teams reduce their stress responses and communicate and collaborate more effectively.
Esther incorporates nervous system work and practices in her coaching, which have been a game-changer for me, particularly in terms of managing stress, effective communications and public speaking.
Esther ran a polyvagal workshop for my senior leadership team which had the most profound impact on the way we engage with each other, and the wider business.
My sessions have created a space where I can release the pressure valve that I've found building up. It has made all the difference.
I found Esther's support invaluable as I set out on my own after two decades of working for others.
As a CEO, I need my management team leading from a place of safety, where top-tier thinking happens. The investment in this training will pay for itself.
If any creatives are struggling with overthinking, procrastination and nervous system regulation, reach out to her. Game changer.
Esther holds you to account in a way that feels safe and helps you move forward.
Start with a free clarity call.
No preparation needed. Tell me what’s going on, and we’ll work out whether I’m the right person to help. If I’m not, I’ll tell you.