The Executive Fawn Response: When Strategic Agreeableness Becomes Self-Abandonment

EXECUTIVE COACHING & LEADERSHIP • May 05, 2026

The conference room hummed with the low, urgent buzz of conversations, the polished mahogany table reflecting the soft glow of the overhead lights.

Celeste, the chief people officer of a rapidly scaling tech company, sat at the head of the table, her fingers lightly drumming a steady rhythm on the cool wood surface. Across from her, voices rose in debate—sharp, confident, and at times cutting.

Celeste’s heart thrummed in her chest, not from excitement, but from a familiar, tightening anxiety. The team was locked in a heated disagreement over a sensitive restructuring plan, and every word felt like a potential landmine.

Instead of voicing her own deep concern about the plan’s impact on employee well-being, Celeste offered a gentle smile, a conciliatory nod, and a phrase designed to ease the tension: “That’s a great point, I think we can integrate that.” Her voice was calm, warm, and reassuring.

Inside, however, a familiar knot twisted in her stomach. She pushed aside her misgivings, suppressing the urge to challenge, to assert, to risk rocking the boat. She felt a momentary relief in smoothing the conflict, yet a small, persistent ache of self-erasure lingered.

This was the executive fawn response in action—the strategic agreeableness that had helped her navigate countless professional storms, now quietly undermining her own voice and sense of self.

What Is the Executive Fawn Response? In plain English, the fawn response is a deeply ingrained survival strategy where an individual seeks to appease, please, or placate others—especially those perceived as threats—to avoid conflict, harm, or abandonment. It stands alongside fight, flight, and freeze as one of the four classical trauma responses. In the context of leadership, the executive fawn response manifests as strategic agreeableness: a habitual over-tuning to others’ needs, excessive conflict avoidance, and a pervasive tendency to charm or placate rather than assert authentic boundaries or perspectives. Unlike genuine relational intelligence—the nuanced capacity to navigate social dynamics with clarity, empathy, and presence—the executive fawn response is rooted in nervous system survival patterns. On the surface, it often appears adaptive and effective, frequently rewarded in professional environments that value diplomacy, consensus-building, and emotional labor. Yet, beneath this veneer, it masks a quiet self-abandonment, gradually eroding internal safety, diluting one’s identity, and fueling chronic exhaustion and burnout.

The Nervous System’s Role: Attachment, Threat, and Survival Modes To truly understand the executive fawn response, we must first delve into the nervous system’s intricate architecture for detecting and responding to threat. Dr. Stephen W. Porges, PhD, a distinguished University of North Carolina professor and the originator of the Polyvagal Theory, describes how the autonomic nervous system dynamically shifts between distinct states: safety and social engagement (ventral vagal), mobilization for fight or flight (sympathetic), and immobilization (dorsal vagal freeze/fawn) [5]. These shifts occur based on our neuroception—our nervous system’s unconscious assessment of safety or danger in our environment. The fawn response, while part of the immobilization spectrum, is distinct from a complete freeze. Instead of a physical shutdown, fawning involves a hyper-attunement to others’ emotions and needs, aiming to prevent conflict or rejection by being overly agreeable and accommodating. This survival strategy is particularly prevalent in individuals who experienced early attachment wounds or relational trauma, where expressing authentic needs or dissent risked caregiver withdrawal, disapproval, or punishment. As clinical experts like Judith Herman, MD, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and Bessel van der Kolk, MD, a renowned psychiatrist and trauma researcher, have extensively documented, such early experiences profoundly shape our adult relational patterns and nervous system responses [1, 6]. The executive fawn response can be understood as a procedural or somatic memory pattern—engrained ways the body and nervous system respond based on early survival learning. It activates autonomic arousal patterns linked to shame and grief, as the individual suppresses vital parts of their identity to maintain perceived relational safety. Over time, this chronic self-erasure contributes significantly to the physiological wear and tear on the body, a phenomenon known as allostatic load, as described by Bruce McEwen, PhD, a neuroendocrinologist and professor at Rockefeller University [2]. This constant internal negotiation between self-preservation and self-abandonment drains vital resources and can lead to profound internal fragmentation.

Celeste and Imani: Two Faces of the Executive Fawn The executive fawn response is not monolithic; it manifests uniquely depending on individual history, nervous system wiring, and current environmental stressors. Let us consider the composite experiences of Celeste and Imani to illustrate this complexity.

Celeste, Chief People Officer Celeste’s journey into leadership was, in many ways, paved by early messages that her value and security depended on being “easy to work with,” “a team player,” and “conflict-free.” In board meetings, she habitually softened her stance, echoing others’ ideas, or offering conciliatory remarks rather than risking direct dissent, even when her professional judgment strongly suggested otherwise. Her career trajectory was undeniably impressive: competent, accomplished, and consistently regarded as a highly collaborative and diplomatic leader. Yet, internally, Celeste felt a persistent, gnawing tension between her polished exterior and a fracturing sense of self. Her fawn response was both her shield and her cage. While it effectively protected her from overt conflict and social rejection, it also gradually eroded her confidence, leaving her feeling exhausted, resentful, and constantly doubting her own judgment. She often found herself replaying conversations, wondering why she hadn’t voiced her true opinion, and feeling a deep sense of internal betrayal. Executive coaching helped Celeste recognize this pattern not as a character flaw, but as a deeply ingrained nervous system survival strategy. With trauma-informed guidance, she began the painstaking process of differentiating true relational intelligence—the art of influence, authentic connection, and strategic negotiation—from the self-abandonment inherent in fawning. This involved learning to tolerate the discomfort of potential disagreement and trusting her own internal compass.

Imani, Senior Engineer Turned VP Imani’s ascent from a senior engineer to a vice president was marked by exceptional technical prowess, strategic brilliance, and relentless drive. She was known for her ability to solve complex problems and deliver under pressure. Yet, beneath her formidable professional competence lay a deeply ingrained pattern of appeasement and emotional over-functioning. Early workplace experiences, coupled with relational dynamics from her past, had taught her that dissent invited isolation, criticism, or even professional stagnation. At leadership retreats, she frequently found herself agreeing with dominant voices, suppressing her innovative ideas or critical insights to maintain harmony and avoid being perceived as difficult or uncooperative. Imani’s fawning manifested as charm, excessive emotional caretaking, and a hyper-attunement to others’ moods, often taking on their emotional burdens to “keep the peace” or prevent perceived instability. This over-functioning was both a survival mechanism—a way to feel indispensable and secure—and a significant source of chronic exhaustion and burnout. Therapy and coaching revealed to her the somatic imprint of early relational wounding, helping her understand that her drive to appease was a protective mechanism. Through this work, she began to cultivate stronger boundaries and a more grounded sense of self that could hold space for constructive conflict without feeling the need to sacrifice her own well-being or authentic contributions. She learned that true harmony emerges not from suppression, but from the integration of diverse voices and perspectives.

The Clinical and Research Foundations The understanding of the executive fawn response is deeply rooted in significant clinical work and neurobiological research. The foundational clinical work of Judith Herman, MD , a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, in her seminal book Trauma and Recovery , emphasizes that survival patterns such as fawning are profound adaptations to relational trauma, not personal failings [1]. Her work underscores the importance of understanding these behaviors within the context of past experiences and the need for safe, corrective relational experiences in healing. Similarly, Bessel van der Kolk, MD , a renowned psychiatrist and author of The Body Keeps the Score , has extensively detailed how trauma is stored not just in the mind, but in the body itself, influencing autonomic responses, emotional regulation, and relational behavior [6]. His research highlights the critical importance of somatic awareness and safe relational attunement in processing and healing trauma. Stephen W. Porges, PhD , through his Polyvagal Theory, offers a neurobiological framework that illuminates how safety and threat cues guide our autonomic states, including the activation of the fawn response [5]. His work provides a scientific basis for understanding why certain social interactions can trigger deep-seated survival patterns, even in seemingly safe professional environments. Pioneering clinicians like Pat Ogden, PhD , and Janina Fisher, PhD , have developed sensorimotor psychotherapy approaches that integrate body-based interventions to recalibrate trauma-affected nervous systems. Their work provides practical methods for addressing the somatic imprints of trauma that manifest in behaviors like fawning. In the realm of leadership development, Mary Beth O’Neill , an executive coach and author of Executive Coaching with Backbone and Heart , guides coaches and leaders in cultivating authentic presence and setting effective boundaries. Her work implicitly contrasts genuine influence and strategic leadership with the over-functioning and appeasement behaviors characteristic of the fawn response. Similarly, Kim Scott , author of Radical Candor , advocates for a leadership style that combines directness with profound personal care—qualities that distinguish authentic relational intelligence from the self-abandonment of fawning. These diverse perspectives converge to form a comprehensive understanding of the executive fawn response, affirming that it is a complex, nervous-system-driven adaptation with deep roots in personal history and significant implications for leadership effectiveness and personal well-being.

Both/And The executive fawn response exists in a complex space of “both/and.” It is both a sophisticated survival strategy and a profound form of self-abandonment. For women leaders like Celeste and Imani, it has often enabled them to navigate complex, high-stakes environments with a semblance of grace and diplomacy, allowing them to climb corporate ladders and achieve significant external success. Yet, simultaneously, it drains their inner resources, masks their authentic voice, and ultimately undermines their sense of self. It is both adaptive in its immediate function of avoiding conflict and profoundly limiting in its long-term impact on personal integrity and well-being. This understanding necessitates a compassionate recognition rather than shame or dismissal. The goal is not an either/or of “fixing” or “accepting” the fawn response as it is. Instead, it is a both/and: honoring the inherent survival wisdom embedded in appeasement—the part of us that learned to keep us safe through relational strategies—while simultaneously cultivating new nervous system capacities for safety, boundary-setting, and authentic leadership presence. This dual awareness allows women to reclaim their voice, assert their needs, and lead with genuine authority without losing their valuable capacity for relational attunement and empathy. It is about expanding the repertoire of responses, not eradicating a part of oneself.

The Systemic Lens Fawn responses rarely develop in isolation; they are deeply ingrained patterns that arise within and are reinforced by relational and organizational systems. These systems often implicitly or explicitly reward agreeableness, conflict avoidance, and “smooth” interpersonal dynamics. Corporate cultures that prioritize consensus, emotional labor, and a superficial sense of harmony can inadvertently reinforce fawning behaviors, particularly among women who often face societal pressures to be agreeable and nurturing. Understanding the executive fawn response through a systemic lens reveals how individual survival patterns interact with broader organizational expectations and gendered norms. Women leaders frequently encounter a double bind: they are expected to be “nice enough” and collaborative to be liked and accepted, yet simultaneously “strong enough” and assertive to lead effectively. This inherent tension can significantly exacerbate reliance on fawning as a nervous system strategy, as it offers a perceived way to navigate these contradictory demands. The systemic lens also compels us to consider change not just at the individual level, but at the team and organizational level. It encourages the cultivation of cultures that normalize authentic conflict, value diverse voices, and prioritize psychological safety. Amy Edmondson, PhD , a professor of leadership and management at Harvard Business School, known for her pioneering research on psychological safety, highlights how creating environments where vulnerability, dissent, and learning from failure are welcomed significantly reduces the need for survival-based responses like fawning [3]. When the system itself shifts to embrace complexity and authenticity, individuals are naturally empowered to lead from a more integrated and genuine place.

Healing and Coaching Map: From Fawning to Authentic Leadership Healing from the executive fawn response is a layered and iterative process that integrates nervous system regulation, somatic awareness, trauma-informed psychotherapy, and targeted leadership development. The following map outlines key steps for recovery and growth, guiding individuals from survival-driven patterns to embodied, authentic leadership. | Step | Focus Area | Description | |—|—|—| | 1. Embodied Self-Awareness & Nervous System Regulation | Polyvagal-informed practices | Cultivate recognition of autonomic states; learn grounding and regulation techniques to shift from fawn to ventral vagal safety. | | 2. Somatic Processing & Integration | Sensorimotor psychotherapy, body awareness | Identify bodily sensations linked to fawning; use movement, breath, and touch to release trauma-encoded patterns and integrate fragmented self-states. | | 3. Cognitive & Emotional Repatterning | Narrative therapy, internal family systems | Explore underlying beliefs and emotions driving fawning; reframe survival narratives; foster self-compassion and inner resourcefulness. | | 4. Relational Repatterning & Boundary Development | Corrective attachment experiences | Engage in therapy or coaching that fosters authentic expression, boundary-setting, and healthy interdependence in safe relationships. | | 5. Leadership Skill Integration & Application | Executive coaching frameworks | Develop skills for strategic conflict, delegation, authentic influence, and decision-making that honor both relational intelligence and self-care. | | 6. Systemic Influence & Culture Change | Organizational culture work | Partner with teams and leaders to create psychological safety and embed values that reduce survival-driven behaviors across the organization. | | Tool | Application | Benefit | |—|—|—| | Mindful Pause | During meetings or tough conversations | Interrupt automatic fawn responses; create space for authentic choice and nervous system regulation. | | Boundary Scripts | Pre-crafted assertive statements | Practice expressing needs, limits, and preferences without apology or over-explanation. | | Reflective Journaling | Explore internal triggers, patterns, and insights | Deepen self-awareness, somatic insight, and emotional processing. | | Somatic Practices | Yoga, breathwork, embodied movement | Release trauma-held tension; enhance body-mind connection; promote nervous system regulation. | | Peer Support Groups | Share experiences with other women leaders | Normalize struggles; build communal resilience; receive validation and diverse perspectives. | | Corrective Relational Experiences | Therapy or coaching relationship | Internalize new relational templates for safety, trust, and authentic connection. |

1. How can I tell if I’m fawning or just being a good team player? Fawning often feels like self-suppression, a quiet internal sacrifice to avoid conflict or rejection, leaving you feeling drained, resentful, or invisible. Being a good team player involves mutual respect, authentic contribution, and the ability to voice your perspective while collaborating effectively, where your voice is heard and valued without a loss of self. The key difference lies in the internal experience and the impact on your sense of integrity.

2. Is the executive fawn response a sign of weakness? Absolutely not. The executive fawn response is a deeply adaptive survival strategy, a testament to your resilience and ingenuity in navigating challenging environments. It is shaped by your nervous system patterns and relational history, often developed in contexts where it was the safest or most effective way to cope. Recognizing it is a profound strength and the crucial first step toward authentic leadership and personal integration.

3. Can fawning lead to burnout? Yes, unequivocally. Chronic self-abandonment, emotional over-functioning, and the constant internal vigilance required to appease others place an immense burden on the nervous system. This sustained allostatic load contributes significantly to exhaustion, stress-related illness, emotional depletion, and ultimately, burnout [2, 3]. Studies, including one on US physicians, highlight the link between adverse experiences and burnout [4].

4. How does trauma relate to fawning in leadership? Early attachment wounds or relational trauma often teach the nervous system to prioritize appeasement as a means of maintaining safety and connection. When expressing authentic needs or dissent was met with disapproval, withdrawal, or punishment, the nervous system learned to adopt fawning as a primary survival mechanism. These deeply ingrained patterns often persist unconsciously into adult leadership roles, influencing how one responds to perceived threats or conflicts [1, 6].

5. What’s the difference between fawning and relational intelligence? Relational intelligence is a nuanced capacity that balances empathy, active listening, and genuine connection with clear boundaries, authentic expression, and strategic communication. Fawning, conversely, sacrifices boundaries and the authentic self to maintain harmony, often at a significant personal cost. While both involve attunement to others, relational intelligence operates from a place of internal security and choice, whereas fawning stems from a place of nervous system-driven survival.

6. Can executive coaching help me overcome fawning? Yes, absolutely. Trauma-informed executive coaching is specifically designed to address the underlying nervous system patterns that drive fawning. It helps retrain these responses, build authentic confidence, develop essential leadership skills (like strategic conflict navigation and delegation), and cultivate a leadership presence that honors your whole self. Coaching provides a safe, corrective relational experience and practical tools for integration.

7. How do I handle conflict without falling into fawning? Handling conflict without fawning involves several steps: practicing nervous system regulation (e.g., mindful breathing, grounding) to stay present and centered; preparing assertive communication that clearly states your perspective or needs using “I” statements; and seeking relational safety where vulnerability and dissent are supported rather than punished. It’s a gradual process of building tolerance for discomfort and trusting your own voice.

8. What role does organizational culture play? Organizational cultures that reward conflict avoidance, emotional labor, and superficial harmony significantly increase the likelihood and prevalence of fawn responses. Conversely, shifting the culture toward psychological safety—where diverse voices are welcomed, mistakes are learning opportunities, and constructive dissent is encouraged—reduces the need for these survival behaviors [3]. Leaders can influence culture by modeling authentic behavior and advocating for systemic changes.

9. Is fawning only about external relationships? No, it extends deeply to internal self-relationships. Fawning involves how you treat your own needs, feelings, and authentic impulses. Healing from fawning requires reconnecting with your inner voice, cultivating self-compassion, and learning to prioritize your own well-being and integrity, not just in relation to others, but also in relation to yourself.

10. Where can I start if I want to heal from fawning? Begin with cultivating nervous system awareness and regulation practices, such as mindful breathing or grounding exercises, to better understand your internal landscape. Simultaneously, seek trauma-informed coaching or therapy that integrates somatic awareness and leadership development. This dual approach addresses both the physiological roots and the behavioral manifestations of the executive fawn response.

Deepening the Nervous System Understanding Behind the Executive Fawn Response The executive fawn response is far more than a mere behavioral quirk or a conscious leadership choice—it is a deeply embedded nervous system survival strategy. A comprehensive understanding of its neurobiological underpinnings opens a potent pathway to compassionate self-recognition and effective, lasting transformation.

Polyvagal Theory: The Architecture of Safety and Survival Dr. Stephen W. Porges’s Polyvagal Theory offers an invaluable lens through which to understand how the autonomic nervous system (ANS) dynamically shifts among states that either facilitate connection and well-being or trigger survival defenses [5]. The ANS, in this model, is not a simple on/off switch between safety and danger, but a sophisticated hierarchy of responses. This constant process of neuroception—our nervous system’s unconscious assessment of cues of safety, danger, and life threat—means that our responses are often mixed, fluid, and highly nuanced rather than static. The ANS comprises three primary branches: 1. Ventral Vagal Complex (VVC) : This is the “social engagement system,” associated with feelings of safety, calm, and connection. When the VVC is active, the nervous system supports flexible, regulated responses—the capacity to listen deeply, speak with authenticity, engage socially with ease, and experience a sense of grounded presence. 2. Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) : This is the mobilization system, which activates fight or flight responses when the brain perceives danger. It ramps up heart rate, sharpens focus, and prepares the body to act assertively, defend itself, or escape. 3. Dorsal Vagal Complex (DVC) : This is the immobilization system, which triggers freeze and shutdown responses. When a threat feels overwhelming, inescapable, or life-threatening, the nervous system may “play dead,” dissociate, or collapse to survive. The executive fawn response occupies a nuanced space related to dorsal vagal activation but is distinct from a pure freeze. Rather than complete immobilization, fawning involves a strategic social appeasement—a hyper-vigilance to others’ emotions and needs as a way to avoid conflict, maintain relational safety, and prevent perceived abandonment. This subtle shutdown of authentic self-expression, while appearing socially engaged, protects against perceived danger but often at the significant cost of internal safety and authenticity. It’s a paradox: using social engagement cues to mask an underlying state of nervous system immobilization.

Somatic Imprint of Early Attachment and Trauma Attachment theory and trauma research further deepen this understanding by linking early relational experiences with the calibration of our nervous system [1, 6]. When primary caregivers were inconsistent, rejecting, critical, or emotionally unavailable, a child’s nervous system learns that being “easy,” compliant, or appeasing reduces danger and increases the likelihood of receiving care or avoiding punishment. The fawn response, in such contexts, becomes a deeply ingrained procedural memory—a nonverbal, bodily “know-how” that can persist unconsciously into adulthood and manifest powerfully in professional contexts. This somatic imprint operates largely below conscious awareness but surfaces in the executive suite as chronic conflict avoidance, performed agreeableness, or relentless over-functioning. The body literally holds the imprint in patterns of muscle tension, restricted breath, and subtle autonomic arousal. Trauma-informed coaching and therapy gently help clients notice these bodily signatures, bring them into conscious awareness, and gradually shift these deeply held patterns. This process of somatic release and integration is crucial for lasting change, as the body’s wisdom often holds the key to unlocking these survival responses.

Revisiting Celeste and Imani: Nervous System Specificity in Leadership Patterns While Celeste and Imani both embody the executive fawn response, their nervous systems reflect distinct patterns of dysregulation that profoundly shape their leadership styles and, consequently, their specific coaching needs. Recognizing these nuances is essential for effective, individualized support. | Leader | Nervous System Pattern | Leadership Pattern | Coaching Focus | |—|—|—|—| | Celeste | Predominantly dorsal vagal immobilization with an overlay of social engagement | Conflict avoidance, passive appeasement, surface calm, internal fragmentation | Nervous system regulation to increase ventral vagal safety, boundary development, authentic voice cultivation, tolerating discomfort. | | Imani | Sympathetic hyper-arousal with intermittent dorsal vagal override and emotional caretaking | Over-functioning, chronic exhaustion, difficulty delegating, hyper-attunement to others’ moods | Somatic processing to address burnout, boundary setting, assertive communication skills, learning to pace and rest. | Celeste’s nervous system often defaults to a shutdown or immobilization response (dorsal vagal) as a protective measure against perceived relational threats. Her social engagement system (ventral vagal) remains active enough to maintain an external warmth and collaborative demeanor, but it masks an internal inhibition of authentic dissent. Coaching for Celeste involves cultivating a felt sense of safety in expressing disagreement and navigating conflict. This means retraining her nervous system to tolerate the discomfort of potential relational rupture without automatically defaulting to fawning. The goal is to expand her window of tolerance for conflict. Imani’s nervous system, conversely, is more frequently in a state of sympathetic hyper-arousal, driving her relentless doing, emotional caretaking, and a compulsive need to manage others’ worlds. Her fawn response manifests as excessive over-functioning and taking on others’ emotional burdens. This hyper-arousal, if sustained, often leads to periods of dorsal vagal override, resulting in profound exhaustion and burnout. Coaching for Imani focuses on developing somatic awareness to identify early signs of overwhelm and sympathetic activation. It involves teaching her pacing, effective delegation, and setting clear boundaries without guilt. This helps her nervous system learn that she doesn’t have to constantly “do” to be safe or valuable. This nuanced nervous system differentiation is critical for effective trauma-informed executive coaching. One-size-fits-all leadership advice often misses these underlying neurophysiological survival patterns, which are precisely what executive coaching must address to facilitate truly transformative and sustainable change.

Executive Coaching Map: Navigating From Survival to Sovereignty Annie Wright’s trauma-informed executive coaching approach meticulously weaves neurobiological insight with practical leadership development.

How do I know whether executive fawn response is a trauma response or a leadership habit?

A leadership habit is usually flexible. A trauma response feels
urgent, bodily, and difficult to interrupt even when you intellectually
know another response would serve you better. In coaching, the
distinction often becomes clearer by tracking what happens in your body
before, during, and after the leadership moment.

Can Executive Coaching help if the issue began in childhood?

Yes, when the work is trauma-informed and appropriately scoped.
Executive Coaching can help you identify how early survival learning
shows up in meetings, delegation, authority, visibility, and boundaries.
If the work opens deeper attachment wounds, Therapy with Annie or Fixing
the Foundations may provide a more clinical container.

Why does my body react before I can think clearly?

The autonomic nervous system prioritizes protection over reflection.
When a cue resembles past danger, the body may mobilize into fight,
flight, freeze, or fawn before the thinking brain has fully assessed the
present moment. That does not mean you are broken; it means your system
learned quickly.

What is the difference between being strategic and abandoning myself?

Strategy includes choice, timing, values, and conscious restraint.
Self-abandonment feels compulsory: you agree, perform, over-explain,
rescue, or disappear because the cost of being fully present feels too
dangerous. Trauma-informed coaching helps restore choice.

Should I choose Executive Coaching, Therapy with Annie, or a course pathway?

Executive Coaching is best when the main arena is leadership behavior
and professional impact. Therapy with Annie is more appropriate when
trauma symptoms, attachment wounds, or clinical distress need treatment.
Enough Without the Effort and Fixing the Foundations can support
identity, over-functioning, and relational repair between sessions.

Will I become less ambitious if I heal this pattern?

Usually, healing does not remove ambition; it changes what fuels it.
Many women remain deeply purposeful, capable, and driven, but they no
longer need fear, shame, or constant proving to supply all of their
momentum.

What is one first step I can take before my next meeting?

Before the meeting, name the pattern you expect to appear, identify
the body signal that announces it, and choose one specific alternative
behavior. The goal is not perfection. The goal is one moment of more
choice than your nervous system had last time.

Related Reading and PubMed Citations

1. Felitti VJ, Anda RF, Nordenberg D, Williamson DF, Spitz AM, Edwards
   V, et al. Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to
   many of the leading causes of death in adults. The Adverse Childhood
   Experiences Study. Am J Prev Med. 1998;14(4):245-258. PMID: 9635069. DOI: 10.1016/s0749-3797(98)00017-8.
2. McEwen BS. Stress, adaptation, and disease. Allostasis and
   allostatic load. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1998;840:33-44. PMID: 9629234. DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1998.tb09546.x.
3. Maslach C, Leiter MP. Understanding the burnout experience: recent
   research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry.
   2016;15(2):103-111. PMID: 27265691. DOI: 10.1002/wps.20311.
4. Trockel MT, West CP, Dyrbye LN, Sinsky CA, Tutty M, et al.
   Assessment of Adverse Childhood Experiences, Adverse Professional
   Experiences, Depression, and Burnout in US Physicians. Mayo Clin
   Proc. 2023;98(6):1003-1015. PMID: 38043996. DOI:
   10.1016/j.mayocp.2023.03.021.
5. Poli A, Gemignani A, Soldani F, Miccoli M. A Systematic Review of a
   Polyvagal Perspective on Embodied Contemplative Practices as Promoters
   of Cardiorespiratory Coupling and Traumatic Stress Recovery for PTSD and
   OCD: Research Methodologies and State of the Art. Int J Environ Res
   Public Health. 2021;18(22):11778. PMID: 34831534. DOI:
   10.3390/ijerph182211778.
6. Heim C, Nemeroff CB. The role of childhood trauma in the
   neurobiology of mood and anxiety disorders: preclinical and clinical
   studies. Biol Psychiatry. 2001;49(12):1023-1039. PMID: 11430844. DOI: 10.1016/s0006-3223(01)01157-x.
7. Beutler S, Mertens YL, Ladner L, Schellong J, Croy I, Daniels JK.
   Trauma-related dissociation and the autonomic nervous system: a
   systematic literature review of psychophysiological correlates of
   dissociative experiencing in PTSD patients. Eur J
   Psychotraumatol. 2022;13(1):2132599. PMID: 36340007. DOI:
   10.1080/20008066.2022.2132599.

Notes on Books and Textbooks That Informed This Draft

• Herman, Judith, MD. Trauma and Recovery: The
  Aftermath of Violence—From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror.
  Basic Books, 1992.
• van der Kolk, Bessel A., MD. The Body Keeps the
  Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Viking,
  2014.
• Porges, Stephen W., PhD. The Pocket Guide to
  the Polyvagal Theory: The Transformative Power of Feeling Safe. W.
  W. Norton & Company, 2017.
• Ogden, Pat, PhD, & Fisher, Janina, PhD.
  Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: Interventions for Trauma and
  Attachment. W. W. Norton & Company, 2015.
• Badenoch, Bonnie, PhD, LMFT. The Heart of
  Trauma: Healing the Embodied Brain in the Context of Relationship.
  W. W. Norton & Company, 2017.
• O’Neill, Mary Beth. Executive Coaching with
  Backbone and Heart: A Systems Approach to Developing Leaders.
  Jossey-Bass, 2000.
• Scott, Kim. Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss
  Without Losing Your Humanity. St. Martin’s Press, 2017.
• Edmondson, Amy C., PhD. The Fearless
  Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for
  Learning, Innovation, and Growth. Wiley, 2019.
• Schwartz, Richard C., PhD. No Bad Parts:
  Healing Trauma and Restoring Wholeness with the Internal Family Systems
  Model. Sounds True, 2021.

References

1. Felitti VJ, Anda RF, Nordenberg D, Williamson DF, Spitz AM, Edwards
   V, et al. Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to
   many of the leading causes of death in adults. The Adverse Childhood
   Experiences Study. Am J Prev Med. 1998;14(4):245-258. PMID: 9635069
2. McEwen BS. Stress, adaptation, and disease. Allostasis and
   allostatic load. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1998;840:33-44. PMID: 9629234
3. Maslach C, Leiter MP. Understanding the burnout experience: recent
   research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry.
   2016;15(2):103-111. PMID: 27265691
4. Trockel MT, West CP, Dyrbye LN, Sinsky CA, Tutty M, et al.
   Assessment of Adverse Childhood Experiences, Adverse Professional
   Experiences, Depression, and Burnout in US Physicians. Mayo Clin
   Proc. 2023;98(6):1003-1015. PMID: 38043996
5. Poli A, Gemignani A, Soldani F, Miccoli M. A Systematic Review of a
   Polyvagal Perspective on Embodied Contemplative Practices as Promoters
   of Cardiorespiratory Coupling and Traumatic Stress Recovery for PTSD and
   OCD: Research Methodologies and State of the Art. Int J Environ Res
   Public Health. 2021;18(22):11778. PMID: 34831534
6. Heim C, Nemeroff CB. The role of childhood trauma in the
   neurobiology of mood and anxiety disorders: preclinical and clinical
   studies. Biol Psychiatry. 2001;49(12):1023-1039. PMID: 11430844
7. Beutler S, Mertens YL, Ladner L, Schellong J, Croy I, Daniels JK.
   Trauma-related dissociation and the autonomic nervous system: a
   systematic literature review of psychophysiological correlates of
   dissociative experiencing in PTSD patients. Eur J
   Psychotraumatol. 2022;13(1):2132599. PMID: 36340007

This article invites you to explore trauma-informed executive
coaching and healing pathways designed to transform survival-driven
leadership patterns into authentic, embodied presence. For more, visit
Annie Wright’s
Executive Coaching.

About the Author

Annie Wright, LMFT

LMFT · Relational Trauma Specialist · W.W. Norton Author

Helping ambitious women finally feel as good as their résumé looks.

Annie Wright is a licensed psychotherapist (LMFT #95719) and trauma-informed executive coach with over 15,000 clinical hours. She works with driven, ambitious women — including Silicon Valley leaders, physicians, and entrepreneurs — in repairing the psychological foundations beneath their impressive lives. Annie is the founder and former CEO of Evergreen Counseling, a multimillion-dollar trauma-informed therapy center she built, scaled, and successfully exited. A regular contributor to Psychology Today, her expert commentary has appeared in Forbes, Business Insider, Inc., NBC, and The Information. She is currently writing her first book with W.W. Norton.

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