Larry English

Schemas are not just beliefs. They are internal rules—formed early, often without language—that teach the nervous system how to stay safe. They quietly determine what feels urgent, what feels dangerous, and what the body mobilizes to protect. They shape how stress is interpreted, how effort is deployed, and how rest is received—if it is received at all. For high performers, schemas rarely sound dramatic.

Burnout doesn’t always announce itself dramatically. High achieving leaders are rewarded for pushing through exhaustion, intellectualizing pain, and managing stress as if it were a personal failing instead of a physiological reality. Over time, this creates a quiet fracture: the mind keeps advancing, while the body stays braced. Sometimes it shows up as chronic anxiety, persistent fatigue. We are living in a culture where high achievement is normalized, but regulation is not.