The Stress express

From information overload to increasing time pressures, many of us are facing burnout - if we're not there already. Stress coach Ani Wilson tells us how to take a step back.

- SARA BUNNY

When she returned to work after a serious burnout, Ani Wilson started to see her colleagues in a different light. She could spot the signs of their extreme stress levels a mile away - the same signs that had plagued her until an episode of bed rest forced her to stop and take stock.

With fresh insight on the perils of extreme pressure, she chose not to rejoin the grinding corporate rat race. Instead, she returned to her roots in neuroscience in a bid to help managers, leaders and executives avoid the dangers of the chronic stress cycle.

These days, Ani works as a stress mastery coach and leadership consultant, helping frazzled professionals around the world. With a focus on teaching achievable steps and evidence-based 'brain hacks', she shares some insights and tips for putting the brakes on the stress express.

DATA OVERLOAD

Despite all our knowledge on the dangers of high cortisol levels, the trend towards meditation and wellness, and the flood of wellness information online, we're still more stressed than ever. Ani believes it's not just our addiction to our phones or an inability to say 'no' that's the problem; our brain's processes are simply struggling to cope with the world we now inhabit.