charlenegisele (2025)

27/07/2025

You don’t drink to celebrate.
You drink to escape.

Not because it’s fun — but because it’s familiar.

Because it’s the only thing that takes the edge off the stress… even if just for a moment.

→ Burnout has a way of making even a simple glass of wine feel like a lifeline.

But let’s be honest: it’s not really helping.
It’s just numbing.

And that’s not weakness.
That’s biology.

When you’re burned out, your nervous system is stuck in survival mode.

Your cortisol is high. Your sleep is wrecked.
Your brain is desperate for relief.

→ So you reach for what feels quick, easy, and socially acceptable: a drink.

Alcohol gives you a dopamine hit — fast.

But here’s the trap:

The more burned out you are, the more you crave short-term relief…
And the harder it becomes to make long-term, nourishing choices.

I know, because I’ve been there.

At the peak of my burnout, alcohol wasn’t a treat — it was a tool.
→ To quiet the anxiety.
→ To make it through another night.
→ To feel something other than pressure.
→ To fake calm when everything felt like too much.

But here’s what I’ve learned:

Alcohol doesn’t heal burnout — it hides it.
And while it offers temporary relief, it taxes your body even more.

→ It delays real recovery.
→ It masks burnout even deeper. Deepening the cycle.
→ Messing with your sleep. Your relationships.Your health.
→ Spiking your anxiety.

Now?

I still enjoy a drink — but only when I’m celebrating, relaxed, happy.

Not when I’m collapsing.
Not when I’m overwhelmed.
Not when I’m trying to avoid what my body’s trying to say.

So if you’ve been drinking to cope…This is your reminder to pause and ask:

Is this really what I need — or just what I’m used to?

Because burnout rewires your coping.

And you deserve more than temporary numbness.

26/07/2025

Ancient Romans were gluttons who vomited at dinner parties.
Yet only 2% were obese.

Modern America? 40% obesity rate.
What did they know that we forgot?

James Pieratt spent years studying ancient warriors.
Romans. Spartans. Samurai.

Here's what he discovered:
They didn't separate fitness from life.
They integrated it.

While we schedule 30 minutes at the gym and call it exercise, Romans walked 12,000 steps daily just living their lives.

They didn't lift weights in air-conditioned rooms.

They stacked stones.
Carried water.
Moved their bodies naturally.
As part of existence, not separate from it.

We've turned fitness into a chore.
They made it a lifestyle.

The result?
Testosterone levels have dropped 50% since 1980.
30-year-olds today have the same T-levels as their grandfathers in their 70s.

We're weaker than the generation before us.
Despite having more gyms.
More supplements.
More "optimization" tools.

Here's what James taught me:
Excellence isn't achieved through pursuing outcomes.
It's achieved through building systems.
Ancient warriors didn't train for a specific battle.
They lived as warriors every day.

Whether you're a banker, lawyer, or CEO, you're a tribal chieftain.
People look to you.
Your family. Your team. Your community.
They need you strong.
Mentally. Physically. Emotionally.
Not just successful.

So stop treating your body like an afterthought.
Stop scheduling fitness like a meeting.
Start living like the warrior you actually are.

🎧 Hear what ancient warriors knew about stress and exercise that we forgot with James Pieratt on this week's episode.

Get the full episode in the comments!

16/07/2025

Did you know your burnout shows up in your feet first?
And your feet can fix it.

Most of us treat our feet like they don't matter.

We stuff them in uncomfortable shoes.
Ignore them all day.
Only notice them when they hurt.

But here's what we're missing:

Your feet are your body's stress barometer.
Tight feet = stressed nervous system.
Relaxed feet = regulated nervous system.

Think about it:

When you're stressed, where do you hold tension?
Shoulders, jaw, and... your feet.
You clench your toes without realizing it.
Your arches tighten.
Your whole foot contracts.

And that tension travels up.
Creating more stress.
More pain.
More exhaustion.

But what if I told you the solution is simpler than you think?

10 minutes of foot care can reset your entire day.

🎧 Hear Dr. Emily's complete foot-to-brain reset protocol on this week's episode

Get the full episode in the comments!

11/07/2025

Stop trying to lose weight when you're exhausted!
I know that sounds backwards.

But here's what's actually happening:

Weight loss is a stress on your body.
If you're already stressed, sleep-deprived, and barely holding it together...

Adding another stressor will backfire.

You might lose a few pounds initially.
But you'll be miserable.
And it won't last.

Here's what actually works:

Fix the foundation first.
Get your sleep sorted.
Manage your stress.
Feel human again.
Then tackle the weight.

When your body feels better, weight loss becomes easier.
When you're not exhausted, you make better choices.
When you're not stressed, your hormones work with you, not against you.

The 5-pound weight loss goal?
Put it on the side for now.

Focus on feeling like you don't want to murder your partner.
Focus on getting through the night.
Focus on having energy again.
The weight will follow.

But trying to do it backwards?
That's why you keep failing.
Foundation first.
Everything else second.

🎧 Get the link in the comments to hear the full conversation with Kate Deering on this week's episode 👇

07/07/2025

→ This isn’t just fishing. It’s neuroscience.

Out there on the ocean, rod in hand, I wasn’t just hoping for a catch.
I was giving my brain a break from the constant chase — notifications, messages, back-to-back tasks…
That buzz we’ve all come to expect (and depend on).

Fishing is slow.
Still.
Sometimes even boring.

And that’s exactly the point.

When you remove the flood of stimulation, your brain begins to reset.
You stop reaching for the next quick fix.
You start to feel calm, grounded — and eventually, genuinely fulfilled.

It’s called a dopamine reset.
And it’s something high performers rarely give themselves permission to do.

→ If you’ve been feeling scattered, stuck in loops, burnt out or just a bit off, it might be dopamine overload.

I had the chance to dive into this topic with Dr. Anna Lembke — one of the world’s foremost experts on dopamine and author of Dopamine Nation.

🎧 Her insights on how to reclaim focus, motivation, and simple pleasures left a lasting impression on me — and I think they’ll do the same for you.

The full conversation is in on the Charlene Gisele Show (Link in bio).

One of the most eye-opening episodes I’ve hosted

06/07/2025

Today is my Birthday, and here’s what I’m celebrating today.

Proof that you don’t have to choose.
High performance OR well-being.
Success OR balance.
Ambition OR rest.

For years, I believed that achievement required one-sided sacrifice.
That pushing harder was the only way forward.
I was wrong.

This year, I’ve watched myself and my clients prove something incredible:

✅ You can work hard AND respect your limits.
✅ You can achieve big goals AND take real breaks.
✅ You can be ambitious AND prioritise your well-being.

It’s not just possible.
It’s more effective.

The clients who embrace this paradox?
They don’t just hit their targets.
They exceed them.
With energy left over.
With relationships intact.
With their health as an asset, not a casualty.

Because here’s what I’ve learned:
Rest isn’t the opposite of productivity.
It’s the fuel for it.

Boundaries aren’t barriers to success.
They’re the foundation of it.

Well-being isn’t a luxury for when you “make it.”
It’s how you make it sustainable.

This year has been proof that the old model is broken.

Grind culture is dying.
Smart work is winning.

And the highest performers?
They’re the ones who’ve figured out how to sprint AND recover.

So today I’m celebrating another year of proving that balance is performance wisdom.

What’s one boundary you set that actually made you MORE productive? 👇

02/07/2025

My clients are exhausted.
New baby. Work deadlines. Sleepless nights.

The guilt about their baby's sleep struggles is overwhelming.
So I asked baby sleep experts Ellie and Sarah:

"What's the biggest myth causing this stress?"

Their answer stopped me in my tracks.
"You need to teach your baby to self-soothe."

This advice is everywhere.
Sleep books. Pediatricians. Well-meaning relatives.

But here's what they told me:
It's neurologically impossible.

Your baby's prefrontal cortex isn't even beginning to come online until age 3.5.

That's the part of the brain responsible for regulation.
For self-soothing.

Right now, your baby is operating from their primitive brain.

The part that says:

Cry when hungry 🍼
Yell when sleepy 😴
Scream when uncomfortable 😫

Your baby isn't being difficult.
They're being human.
With a developing brain that literally cannot self-regulate yet.

So when you hear “let them figure it out"...
You're asking a tiny human to do something their brain isn't capable of.

🎧 Hear Ellie and Sarah's full insights on this week's episode.

🔗 Get the link to the episode below! 👇

01/07/2025

What if burnout doesn’t show up at your desk… but at your dinner table?

Not in missed deadlines — but in the way you just snapped at your child.
Not in your inbox — but in the weight behind the words, “I’m fine.”
Not in your calendar — but in how you’re half-listening to your partner while replying to emails on your phone.

Because burnout doesn’t always look like breakdown.
Sometimes, it looks like distance.

These are the quiet confessions I hear again and again:

“I didn’t even know I was burnt out.”
“I thought I was just tired, or irritable, or distant.”
“We were both suffering… silently.”

Here are 3 subtle signs your relationship might be absorbing the impact of burnout:

1. You’re physically present but emotionally absent.
You’re at the table, but your mind is still at work.
Conversations feel like chores.

2. You avoid “one more thing.”
Even small requests — a question, a comment, a touch — feel like overload.
You’re not cold. You’re spent. You’ve got nothing left to give.

3. You’re more irritable, more frustrated… or numb.
It’s not that you don’t care.
It’s that your nervous system is on survival mode.
You’re out of internal resources.

I see this in nearly every high performer I coach:
Brilliant at work.
Burning out behind closed doors.

The photo I’m sharing — my husband whispering in my ear at dinner during our scheduled ‘Date Night’ — captures a moment of connection.
But I know how fragile that connection can be.

My first marriage ended during a season of deep burnout.
Not because we didn’t love each other.
But because we had nothing left to give.
We were disconnected — from each other, and from ourselves.

Since then, I’ve paid close attention to how burnout creeps in.
Not just in performance — but in presence. In intimacy. In joy.

If you’ve noticed a growing distance at home…
That could be burnout, too.

To help you assess your burnout risk, I’ve created a short, powerful test.
You’ll find the link in the comments.

29/06/2025

Is your marriage hanging by a thread?

Burnout tells you that fun in your marriage is optional.
That intimacy can wait.
That your partner will understand… and stick around.

But here’s the truth: they won’t!

I know this because I’ve lived it.
At the peak of my burnout, I went through a divorce.

Burnout doesn’t just show up at your desk.
It creeps into your marriage, too.

It doesn’t just threaten your career — it can quietly unravel your relationship.

So on this Sunday afternoon, let me ask you:
When was the last time you really played with your husband or wife?
Laughed until your stomach hurt?
Got silly, spontaneous, and light together?

Playfulness in a marriage isn’t a luxury — it’s a lifeline.
Laughter creates connection.
Joy builds intimacy.
And fun keeps you growing closer — not apart.

This moment right here — laughing with my husband — is a reminder that love needs lightness to thrive.

So if you’ve been all work and no play lately… this is your sign to bring the fun back in.

Because burnout ends where joy begins.

27/06/2025

When you're busiest is when you need breaks most.
But here's the trap:

"This isn't work because I love it."
"This isn't work because it's not billable."

Plot twist
It's all work.

Your brain doesn't care if you love it.
It still needs rest.

Jodie's solution?

Schedule rest like you schedule meetings.
Make downtime non-negotiable.

Because if you don't schedule it, it won't happen.

🎧 Hear Jodie's full story about building Thrive Law Firm and performing at her best.

🔗 Full episode link in comments below ⬇️

25/06/2025

You don't have a sleep problem!
You have an anxiety and stress problem 😰

And that changes everything.

You can buy the perfect mattress.
Download every sleep app.
Follow every bedtime routine.

But if your nervous system is wired, none of it matters.

Here's what Prof Russell taught me about insomnia and burnout:

They're dance partners.
Stress kills sleep.
Poor sleep increases stress.
Repeat until they "co-create a monster."

The breakthrough insight?

Stop treating the symptom.
Start treating the cause.

Your sleep problem isn't a sleep problem.
It's a stress problem showing up in your bedroom.

Here's how to break the cycle:

1️⃣ Address the stress first
2️⃣ Then watch sleep naturally follow
3️⃣ Stop chasing perfect sleep hygiene
4️⃣ Start chasing stress management

Your 3am racing thoughts aren't about your pillow.
They're about your pressure.

✅Focus on and fix the pressure.

The sleep will fix itself.

🔗 Full episode in the comments! 👇

charlenegisele

27/07/2025

26/07/2025

16/07/2025

11/07/2025

07/07/2025

06/07/2025

02/07/2025

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29/06/2025

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