Episode #142
142 - From Functional Burnout to Resourced: Learning to Trust Yourself Again
What happens when the life you built — the career, the identity, the pace, the version of you who could hold it all — no longer works? In this episode of Threshold Moments, Sarah sits down with Emily Evans, a former Resourced student and founder of The Wander Years, to talk about functional burnout, identity shifts, nervous system work, and what it looks like to enter the "fertile void" without rushing to figure out what comes next. Emily shares how she walked away from a decade-long career she loved after her body began sending signals she could no longer ignore. What followed wasn't an immediate reinvention. It was years of slowing down, letting identities fall away, learning to follow small "micro yeses," and discovering who she was when she stopped measuring herself by her output. They also talk about Emily's recent trip to Mongolia, where she experienced a powerful real-life moment of trusting her body, honoring a clear no, and realizing just how much had changed. Sarah and Emily explore the difference between urgency and sustainable aliveness, the discomfort of not knowing what comes next, the importance of play and joy, and how slowing down can create space for a version of ourselves that has been there all along. Emily also shares how her own season of wandering eventually inspired The Wander Years — a space for women over 40 to connect, travel, move, read, play, and discover what might emerge when they don't have to have everything figured out. In this episode, Sarah and Emily talk about: What functional burnout can look and feel like When your body starts telling you what your mind hasn't acknowledged yet Leaving a successful career without knowing what comes next Why slowing down doesn't always immediately create clarity The "fertile void" and learning to stay with the unknown Following micro yeses instead of needing the whole plan Separating worth from productivity and output How Resourced supported Emily during a major identity transition Boundary repair, fawning, and feeling seen instead of ashamed The moment in Mongolia when Emily trusted her body's no Letting go of the need to be liked, perform, or manage everyone else's experience Midlife, changing identities, and meeting a new version of yourself Tracking joy, play, novelty, and connection How Emily's own wandering led to the creation of The Wander Years Ready to go deeper? If Opting Out of Urgency has helped you recognize the ways urgency may be shaping how you work, relate, make decisions, or move through your life, Resourced is where we take this work deeper. Resourced is a nervous system repatterning journey designed to move you from learning and supported practice into integration in your everyday life. Enrollment for Resourced is now open. And if you haven't finished Opting Out of Urgency yet, you still have time. Replays are available through September 22. Connect with Sarah Opting Out of Urgency — A free 3-day nervous system reset to help you move beyond urgency and reconnect with your energy, clarity, and rhythm. Resourced - A nervous system repatterning experience designed to help you build capacity, create more choice, and move through your life with greater agency instead of urgency. Follow Sarah on Instagram @sarahtacyt Learn more about Sarah's work Join Sarah's email list Connect with Emily Emily Evans is the founder of The Wander Years , and Wander Women Social Club - a travel-inspired community for women 40+ to reconnect with friendship, fun, adventure, and themselves as they navigate a new era of life. Through small-group travel and meaningful connection, The Wander Years invites women to embrace the freedom of not having everything figured out - and to discover what comes alive when they give themselves permission to wander. Follow The Wander Years on Instagram. You can also find Emily's writing on her Substack, This Late Bloomer , where she shares real stories about starting over at 50, blooming late, and remembering who you actually are.