Outsmart Burnout: The Podcast for High-Achieving Women with Dr. Zarya Rubin

Dr. Zarya Rubin, MD - Physician & Burnout Expert
  • 5.0 (24)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Weekly

You're smart, driven, and accomplished — but you're exhausted. Not the kind of tired that a good night's sleep fixes. The kind that makes you wonder how much longer you can keep going at this pace, and whether the life you've built is actually the life you want. Welcome to Outsmart Burnout. I'm your host, Dr. Zarya Rubin — a Harvard-educated physician, TEDx speaker, burnout expert, and recovering overachiever — this show is for high-achieving women who are done white-knuckling their way through life and ready to reclaim their passion, purpose, and joy. As a physician who burned out in medicine and found my way back to personal and professional success, I don't just study burnout - I've lived it. Each week, I invite expert guests to dive into the real conversations high-achieving women need most: the science of burnout and nervous system regulation, the identity shifts that midlife brings, the systems and patterns keeping you stuck, and the practical strategies to help you feel like yourself again. Remember, burnout is not your destiny, it's your wake-up call. Listen to my TEDx talk about burnout: https://bit.ly/TEDxBurnout Learn more and work with me: www.drzarya.com Follow along on Instagram: www.instagram.com/drzaryarubin Download your FREE Outsmart Burnout Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/outsmartburnouttoolkit For 1:1 burnout support, check out The Burnout Blueprint! https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/ New episodes drop every Wednesday. Leave us a comment, like, subscribe, download, and share an episode with a friend.

  1. 5d ago

    The Messy Middle: Why Capable Women Fall Apart in Midlife - with Natasha Ramlall

    Natasha Ramlall, embodied immigration coach and founder of Humanist Coaching, joins Dr. Zarya to unpack "identity rupture" — the disorienting collapse that hits hyper-capable women at midlife. After 25 years supporting immigrants and refugees, Natasha's own burnout, perimenopause, and a Hashimoto's diagnosis converged at once. They dig into why women blame themselves before they investigate, the collective dimension of burnout, and a simple somatic practice anyone can try today. KEY TAKEAWAYS - "Identity rupture" describes the internal transformation life transitions demand — not just the external logistics of a crisis. - Burnout, perimenopause, and autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto's often converge and mimic each other, making self-blame the default first response. - Our default setting is "there's something wrong with me" instead of "there's something wrong" — investigate before you internalize. - Burnout has a collective dimension, not just a personal one — widespread exhaustion reflects an overvalued, unsustainable masculine-coded pace of life. - Embodied integration means reconnecting to the body's felt sense alongside the mind's stories, not choosing one over the other. - A simple practice: place a book on your lower belly lying down — it should rise on the inhale, fall on the exhale. That's diaphragmatic breathing. - Self-trust doesn't come from making the "right" choices — it comes from knowing you can withstand whatever happens. TIMESTAMPS 00:06 – Introduction to Natasha Ramlall 01:46 – 25 years working with immigrants and refugees 07:43 – Natasha's own experience of burnout 16:12 – Blaming herself for two years before her Hashimoto's diagnosis 21:15 – The collective dimension of burnout 28:11 – What embodied integration actually means 33:07 – A practical belly-breathing exercise 41:07 – Identity rupture, explained 53:06 – Rapid Fire Round GUEST CONTACT Website: humanistcoaching.ca Free resource: guided audio resourcing practice (available via website) Special offer: introductory embodied integration coaching session, $44 CAD Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  2. Sep 23

    The Fertility Wake-Up Call: Why Stress Ages Your Ovaries with Dr. Miranda Naylor

    Board-certified functional physician Dr. Miranda Naylor joins Dr. Zarya to unpack why ovarian aging isn't just about egg count — it's a whole-body process shaped by stress, toxins, and nervous system dysregulation. We cover her own fertility journey through medical residency, why "normal" labs often aren't optimal, and the new AI-powered MenoTime test that estimates ovarian age. Miranda shares her RISE Method for helping women in high-demand life seasons reclaim their hormonal health. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Ovarian aging is a whole-cell process, not just egg count — toxins, stress, poor sleep, and even overtraining can accelerate it. - Fight-or-flight mode diverts resources away from reproduction — nervous system regulation is foundational, not optional. - Early warning signs precede missed periods: worse PMS, irritability, and chronic tension are the body's first flags. - Most lab "normal" ranges were built on broad, often male-based populations — not optimized for individual women. - MenoTime, a new AI/ML test, can estimate ovarian age and time to menopause using existing hormone markers. - Vitamin D and ferritin are simple, actionable labs every woman should track. - Environmental toxins — plastics and synthetic fragrance especially — quietly damage mitochondria and disrupt hormones. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 – Introduction to Dr. Miranda Naylor 01:29 – How residency and her own amenorrhea led her to functional medicine 06:35 – What actually drives ovarian aging 12:00 – The nervous system's role in fertility and hormones 14:25 – Early warning signs before a missed period 15:53 – Practical steps to protect ovarian and cellular health 20:31 – Inflammation and "inflammaging," explained 26:34 – The RISE Method breakdown 30:38 – Why "normal" labs aren't the same as optimal 39:55 – Rapid Fire Round GUEST CONTACT Website: drmirandanaylor.com (free hormone quiz available) Instagram: www.instagram.com/drmiranda Book a Clarity Call: available via her website Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  3. Sep 16

    Why Burnout Is a Nervous System Problem, Not a Willpower Problem - with Jill Clark

    Jill Clark is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California and a Master ART (Accelerated Resolution Therapy) certified clinician. She specializes in neurotherapy, trauma resolution, and nervous system recovery, working with high-performing women, first responders, and professionals who have done everything right and are still stuck. She is the CEO and Founder of The Resiliency Co., holds a state contract with CAL FIRE treating active-duty firefighters, and recently released her second book, The RESTORE Roadmap: What to Do When Insight Isn't Enough. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Burnout rarely walks in the door labeled "burnout" — it shows up as brain fog, insomnia, memory issues, and reactivity that clients describe one symptom at a time. - Talk therapy and CBT are effective for situational stress, but complex trauma lives in a loop the thinking brain can't fully resolve on its own. - Neurofeedback maps and retrains brain activity directly through a reward system, helping shift the brain out of chronic fight-or-flight or shutdown states. - ART uses bilateral stimulation (eye movement or tapping) to help the brain reconsolidate a traumatic memory — without requiring the client to retell the whole story. - The brain doesn't distinguish between imagination and reality, which is exactly why nervous-system-focused techniques (and unresolved trauma loops) work the way they do. - Jill's RESTORE framework: Regulate, Educate, Stabilize, Transform, Optimize, Reconnect, Embody. - "Most people put a Band-Aid on a gaping wound and expect it to shift." Real change means going after what's underneath the symptoms, not just managing them. TIMESTAMPS 01:37 What burnout actually looks like walking into Jill's office 04:49 Jill's origin story: 25 years in fitness, therapist in her 40s 09:28 What neurofeedback is and how it works 14:35 Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) explained 18:17 Inside Jill's work with CAL FIRE firefighters 22:43 Why over-intellectualizing works against nervous system healing 25:33 The RESTORE Roadmap and what each letter means 35:13 Rapid fire round 42:25 The first step if you feel stuck despite years of therapy GUEST CONTACT Website: resiliencyco.net Book: "The RESTORE Roadmap: What to Do When Insight Isn't Enough" — on Amazon Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  4. Sep 9

    Reconnect to Your Purpose - with Dr. Saidie Rodriguez

    GUEST BIO Dr. Sadie Rodriguez is a pediatric cardiac intensivist at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and an associate professor of pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine. Her academic work focuses on clinician well-being, professional identity, and coaching-based interventions in healthcare, and she's the founder of Soul Shine, an integrative coaching practice that blends science with deeper meaning. Her heart lives in the human side of medicine — helping clinicians remember who they are beneath the rules, expectations, and relentless pace of healthcare. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Choosing your work on purpose, even briefly and privately, can be more empowering than simply enduring it — Sadie's practice of pausing at the ICU doors to ask "do I want to go in?" turned obligation into an active choice. - Gratitude isn't about bypassing hard emotions — anger and grief still need to be released first, through crying, music, or movement, before gratitude has room to land. - A simple mortality-awareness practice — treating an ordinary moment, like a cup of coffee, as if it might be your last — can restore presence without requiring any change to your actual circumstances. - Reframing "I have to" as "I get to" is a small, almost performative shift, but repeated often enough, it changes how burdensome daily obligations feel. - To start untangling identity from career, ask what your purpose would be if it had to be a verb, not a job title — something like "to connect," "to create," or "to love." - Self-worth often gets quietly outsourced to titles and roles; examining where you actually derive your sense of worth, belonging, and security is a useful place to start disentangling identity from career. TIMESTAMPS 03:24 Dr. Sadie's path into pediatric cardiac critical care 08:24 The gratitude shift: from frustrated over dishes to grateful for health 11:53 The "do you want to go in?" doorway practice 18:41 Gratitude as a practice, not a bypass 22:38 The "last cup of coffee" mortality exercise 26:50 Reframing "I have to" as "I get to" 27:19 Untangling identity from what you do 38:00 Rapid fire round 42:21 "Reconnecting to your purpose starts with... knowing yourself" GUEST CONTACT Free gift (10-minute self-trust activation): soulshine.global/podcastgift Practice: Soul Shine Coaching Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  5. Sep 2

    Is Burnout a Response to a Broken World? with Liz Moyer Benferhat

    Liz Moyer Benferhat spent nearly two decades in sustainable development, grassroots poverty work, and UN-affiliated policy research before noticing that the people doing the world's hardest, most heart-centered work were quietly burning out, with no real language for it. In 2018 she founded We Heal for All, a circle-based model blending neuroscience, storytelling, and embodied practice to help changemakers process the emotional weight of their work instead of suppressing it. Her debut book, When the World Hurts, argues that burnout among people who care deeply isn't a personal failing — it's an unprocessed, entirely rational response to what they're carrying. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Burnout isn't a personal failing — it can be a rational, intelligent response from the nervous system when someone won't slow down on their own. - Helpers and changemakers are often the last to recognize their own burnout because ambition, professional ego, and perfectionism can disguise it as commitment. - Regulating your nervous system (calming it) and processing an emotion (letting it move through fully) are related but different tools — both matter. - "Validate first before you fix": people, and emotions, generally need warm, attuned presence before they need advice or a solution. - Non-core emotions like anxiety and shame often function as blockers that keep people from feeling their actual core emotions underneath. - Culture change doesn't only happen through organizing or activism — it also happens through daily embodiment: how you spend your money, raise your kids, treat the cashier at the store. - Liz's circle model uses guidelines like no unsolicited advice and no crosstalk to create emotionally safe group space for processing collective pain together. TIMESTAMPS 02:36 Liz's origin story and the moment burnout became visible: "you are gray" 07:57 Why helpers are often the last to recognize their own burnout 18:34 Reframing burnout as a rational nervous system response 20:46 Processing vs. intellectualizing emotions 23:00 "Validate first before you fix" and the body brain / emotion brain / thinking brain 24:45 Core emotions vs. blocking emotions like shame and anxiety 30:21 Inside a We Heal for All circle 36:17 Her book, When the World Hurts 45:57 Rapid fire round 52:09 What she wants listeners to remember GUEST CONTACT Website: weHealforall.com Book: "When the World Hurts: Why the World's Pain Makes Sense and What You Can Do About It" (audiobook releasing this October) Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  6. Aug 28

    "Immiguilt" - Serena Arora on Shame, Shoulding and Reclaiming Your Worth as an Immigrant Daughter

    Serena Arora has spent over 25 years teaching Ayurveda and yoga therapy, yet she still burned out completely before writing Unbound, her memoir about recovery. She's dedicated much of her career to guiding transformation, both at her retreat center in Costa Rica and across the globe, helping women reconnect with their bodies through Ayurveda and yoga therapy — addressing burnout, seasonal shifts, and life transitions by teaching them to align with the body's natural rhythms rather than push against them. In this conversation, she introduces the concept of "immiguilt," her term for the inherited guilt she carried as an immigrant daughter, tracing it back three generations to her grandmother's escape from foot-binding in China. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Ayurveda's core principle is balance through opposites — if the body or mind runs cold, dry, hot, or scattered, the medicine is often its opposite quality. - The three doshas map surprisingly well onto burnout culture: Pitta energy ("steam") is driven and perfectionistic — exactly the profile society rewards with promotions and success, right up until it burns out. - "Ama" is Ayurveda's term for toxic buildup from anything not fully processed — undigested food, but also undigested emotional experience or trauma. - A useful daily filter for food, relationships, and habits: does this contribute to the fabric of my well-being, or deplete it? - Recovery from deep burnout isn't linear or fast — Serena's own recovery took roughly four years of rebuilding her nervous system before she felt like herself again. - "Immigilt" — Serena's term for the guilt carried by immigrant daughters across generations, even without a single traumatic event of their own to point to. - Simple, non-negotiable daily anchors, like hot water first thing and a bedtime before 10pm, can matter more than any single big intervention. TIMESTAMPS 04:15 Serena's roots in Ayurveda and how yoga therapy found her 10:07 What Ayurveda actually is: balance through opposites 17:23 "Ama": the toxic buildup of what we don't process 20:09 The three doshas — Vata, Pitta, and Kapha 25:54 Why Pitta energy is exactly what burnout culture rewards 30:44 Serena's own burnout, and the four years it took to recover 41:32 The story behind Unbound and the term "immigilt" 46:57 Rapid fire round 52:49 One thing to do tomorrow morning GUEST CONTACT Website: serenaarora.com Retreat: Costa Rica retreat this October — details on her website Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  7. Aug 19

    The Hedonic Treadmill : Why Achievement Never Feels Like Enough - with Dr. Jeannie Lawrence

    Dr. Jeannie Lawrence spent years looking like she had it all together — a thriving psychiatry career, a new marriage, a beautiful home — while quietly wondering why none of it felt like enough. She and Dr. Zarya trace her slow-burn path into burnout, the light-bulb moment that pulled her out of it, and why "stable" is not the same as "thriving." They dig into the hedonic treadmill, what it really means to disconnect from your body to survive medicine, and the framework Dr. Jeannie uses to help physicians move from surviving to actually feeling alive. KEY TAKEAWAYS - Even positive life changes (marriage, a new job, a new house) are still stressors — hitting your goals doesn't guarantee lasting happiness (the hedonic treadmill). - Physicians are trained to look for solutions outside themselves, when real change often starts internally — "your thoughts create your emotions." - Burnout recovery can't be skipped or bypassed — you can't build a thriving life on top of an unaddressed chronic stress state. - Surviving medicine often requires disconnecting from your own body (skipping meals, bathroom breaks, sleep) — a survival skill that stops working once training ends. - Moving from surviving to thriving means reconnecting with dreams you've put away, getting clear on your values, and building "emotional mastery" — feeling guilt or fear without letting it derail you. - "Stable" and "thriving" are not the same thing — flourishing includes purpose, connection, and flow, not just the absence of crisis. TIMESTAMPS 01:45 Dr. Jeannie's path into medicine 04:00 Discovering psychiatry — "it chose me" 08:35 The slow burn into burnout after residency 14:01 The aha moment: "your thoughts create your emotions" 17:33 The hedonic treadmill and delayed gratification 22:33 Why she added coaching to her psychiatric background 30:52 Survival mode in medicine and disconnecting from the body 39:17 Three steps from surviving to thriving 44:50 Rapid fire round 48:42 "You matter too" GUEST CONTACT Website: jeannielawrencemd.com/sanctuary Also on Substack (her favorite), Instagram, and LinkedIn Connect with Dr. Zarya Rubin, founder of The Afterglow Collective: Website: www.outsmartburnout.com IG: www.instagram.com/outsmartburnout Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with Dr. Zarya: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book Dr. Zarya for your next event: hello@drzarya.com

  8. Aug 12

    Be a Facilitator, Not a Fixer - Laurie Maddalena on Sustainable Leadership

    Laurie Maddalena spent years as the "fixer" — the leader who carries her team's entire workload — before discovering the archetype shift that changed her career: becoming a facilitator instead. She and Dr. Zarya unpack why "open door policies" and multitasking quietly fuel burnout, the five-minute practice that ends workday chaos, and how Laurie holds a 40-hour workweek while running a company and raising three kids. They also share a candid conversation about parenting kids with chronic illness and the mantras that help them stay grounded when control isn't an option. KEY TAKEAWAYS - The fixer-to-facilitator shift is the most important transition in leadership — and most people are promoted into it with zero training. - Task-switching (multitasking) increases the time it takes to complete a task by over 500%. - The "open door policy," taken to the extreme, is one of the most burnout-inducing workplace practices — protected, undistracted time is essential. - A five-minute end-of-day practice — naming your top two priorities for tomorrow — reduces mental clutter and lowers stress. - Burnout is often a leadership and systems problem, not just a personal one — vague delegation ("drive-by delegation") sets people up to fail. - Boundaries, like disconnecting fully on vacation, model healthy leadership for the whole team rather than restricting others. - When facing what you can't control, the mantras "be with what is" and "invested yet detached" can help you stay engaged without burning out. TIMESTAMPS 01:53 Laurie's two pivotal leadership moments 09:48 What the "fixer" actually looks like at work 15:00 Banishing the open door policy and multitasking 20:56 The five-minute end-of-day recalibration practice 32:01 How Laurie caps her workweek at 40 hours 41:49 Instilling accountability instead of "drive-by delegation" 48:06 Parenting through chronic illness: "be with what is" 51:29 Rapid fire round 55:04 "Be a facilitator, not a fixer" GUEST CONTACT Website (free Fixer to Facilitator assessment): lauriemaddalena.com Connect on LinkedIn: Laurie Maddalena Connect with Dr. Zarya, The Burnout Doctor: Website: www.theburnoutdoctor.com IG: www.instagram.com/theburnoutMD Get your FREE Burnout to Balance Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/burnouttoolkit Book a FREE Consult with The Burnout Doctor: https://calendly.com/drzarya/free-burnout-consult Reach out with questions or to book The Burnout Doctor for your next event: hello@theburnoutdoctor.com

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About

You're smart, driven, and accomplished — but you're exhausted. Not the kind of tired that a good night's sleep fixes. The kind that makes you wonder how much longer you can keep going at this pace, and whether the life you've built is actually the life you want. Welcome to Outsmart Burnout. I'm your host, Dr. Zarya Rubin — a Harvard-educated physician, TEDx speaker, burnout expert, and recovering overachiever — this show is for high-achieving women who are done white-knuckling their way through life and ready to reclaim their passion, purpose, and joy. As a physician who burned out in medicine and found my way back to personal and professional success, I don't just study burnout - I've lived it. Each week, I invite expert guests to dive into the real conversations high-achieving women need most: the science of burnout and nervous system regulation, the identity shifts that midlife brings, the systems and patterns keeping you stuck, and the practical strategies to help you feel like yourself again. Remember, burnout is not your destiny, it's your wake-up call. Listen to my TEDx talk about burnout: https://bit.ly/TEDxBurnout Learn more and work with me: www.drzarya.com Follow along on Instagram: www.instagram.com/drzaryarubin Download your FREE Outsmart Burnout Toolkit: https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/outsmartburnouttoolkit For 1:1 burnout support, check out The Burnout Blueprint! https://drzarya.myflodesk.com/ New episodes drop every Wednesday. Leave us a comment, like, subscribe, download, and share an episode with a friend.

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