Nostos Nest

28/07/2025

After years of tying my worth to productivity, I’m still learning how to rest - not because I’ve earned it, but because I deserve it.

While travelling in the Cook Islands, I got sick a few days in. Suddenly, everything stopped - no to-do lists, no schedule, not even my regular morning walk.

Getting sick wasn’t ideal, but it forced me to slow down even more than I’d planned. And in that stillness, I realised how much I’m still unlearning.

I’ve spent so long trying to be who I thought I was supposed to be. Now I’m figuring out who I actually want to be - and how to let that be enough.

Read the post here: https://nostosnest.com/2025/07/learning-to-slow-down/

Learning to slow down after burnout and redundancy has been harder than I expected - but maybe this is where the real recovery begins.

25/07/2025

Burnout recovery isn’t about “getting back to normal” - it’s a full recalibration of how you live, work, and relate to yourself.

It takes time - and it changes everything.

💚 If you’re in the middle of it, be gentle with yourself. You’re not doing it wrong - you’re just doing the work.

21/07/2025

Burnout recovery isn’t something you tick off a list. It’s not quick, and it’s not linear.

It took me five years, a lot of self-reflection, and eventually stepping away from corporate life to start feeling calm, grounded, and like myself again.

In this post, I’ve pulled together everything that helped me - not the surface-level stuff, but the main things that actually made a difference.

If you’re navigating burnout (or supporting someone who is), I hope this helps you feel less alone - and maybe gives you a starting point or some hope for the road ahead.

Read it here: https://nostosnest.com/2025/07/burnout-recovery-what-helped-me/

My burnout recovery journey took five years. I'm sharing what helped me, in the hope that it helps you do it faster.

14/07/2025

Stepping away from work revealed how deeply I had internalised my corporate mask. I didn’t realise how much of my identity was tied to being ‘on’ until I wasn’t anymore.

In this blog post, I reflect on identity, nervous system changes, and how you can reconnect with your real self – even if you can’t walk away from your job.

Have you ever felt this too? That sense of not quite knowing who you are outside the role?

Read the full post here: https://nostosnest.com/2025/07/the-corporate-mask/

Stepping away from work revealed how deeply I had internalised my corporate mask. In this post, I reflect on identity, nervous system shifts, and how you can reconnect with your real self – even if you can’t walk away from your job.

11/07/2025

Toxic behaviour at work isn’t just annoying - it pushes good people out and slowly poisons the culture.

In this post, I share a real example of how toxic employees sometimes get protected - and what that silence costs everyone else.

Sadly, I know I’m not the only one with a story like this.

🧠 If you’ve ever seen toxic behaviour swept under the rug - or had to work with someone everyone tiptoed around - I’d love to hear your story. No need to name names. Just say what happened, or how it felt.

Let’s make space for the conversations most workplaces avoid.

Read the full blog post here: https://nostosnest.com/2025/07/toxic-workplace-behaviour/

Toxic workplace behaviour isn’t just unpleasant - it drives away good people and damages culture. This post explores what happens when toxic employees are protected and how we can stop it.

07/07/2025

“At least…”
“It could be worse…”
“Everything happens for a reason…”

We’ve all heard these phrases - maybe even said them ourselves - but they don’t always land the way we hope.

In this post, I unpack why some common responses to pain and struggle can feel dismissive, and what to say instead. It’s not about being perfect - it’s about being present.

💬 Have a read - and let me know if any of these have been said to you (or by you) before.

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When someone opens up about stress or mental health, our words matter. This post explores what not to say - and what to say instead - to truly support someone who’s struggling.

04/07/2025

At the end of last year, I felt myself heading toward burnout - so I took a two-month mental health break.
This post shares what I actually did during that time: rest, support, structure, and a slow return to myself.
No big life overhaul - just steady, deliberate choices that helped me start to feel ok again.

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Burnout recovery takes more than rest - it takes repair. This post shares what I learned during two months off work, from emotional healing to rebuilding a sense of self.

30/06/2025

We don’t just quit bad habits. We quit good ones too - especially when life gets messy.
The gym, the journaling, the walking, the self-care… all the things that help us feel better are often the first to go when we need them most.
This post is about why that happens - and how we can gently find our way back.

👉 Read it here:

Why we quit good habits often has less to do with discipline and more to do with how we handle discomfort. This post explores when to keep going - and when to let go.

27/06/2025

Have you ever seen Squid Game?
After surviving round after round of layoffs in corporate life… it started to feel eerily familiar.

In this post, I talk about what The Corporate Squid Game really feels like - and the quiet toll it takes on your mental health.

👉 https://nostosnest.com/2025/06/corporate-squid-game-mass-layoffs

What does your workplace survival story look like?

What do layoffs and Squid Game have in common? A high-stakes survival culture at work. Here’s how it feels - and what it does to your mental health.

23/06/2025

Have you ever sat at a café or restaurant and found yourself watching people across different generations - and thinking about life?

That’s what happened to me recently - and it sparked this post.

From the urgency of our teens to the questioning of our 40s, and the clarity that starts to emerge in our 50s - I’ve reflected on what each decade seems to teach us.
Not as a life coach. Not as an expert. Just as someone who’s lived a little - and is still learning.

Whether you’re 25, 55, or somewhere in between, I hope this post resonates in some small way.

👉 Read it here: https://nostosnest.com/2025/06/reflecting-on-life-lessons-by-decade/

💬 I’d love to know - what’s something your lived decades have taught you?

Looking back with midlife clarity, I’m sharing the life lessons by decade I’ve learned - and what each era taught me about identity, growth, and finding peace.

20/06/2025

In my latest blog post I explain how I used my sick leave to take 2 months off work for burnout. Here’s how to take mental health leave, with tips and entitlements explained.

How I used my sick leave to take 2 months off work for burnout. Here’s how to take mental health leave in Australia, with tips and entitlements explained.