Breaking Free from Burnout: Why High‑Achieving Women Feel Stuck and How a COR Retreat Could Reset Your Life

One in two Mid‑Western professional women recently reported consistently feeling burned out at work, compared with one in three men. 42 % of women said they were “often or always burned out,” roughly a 20 % increase from just two years earlier. Gallup reports that over 80 % of working mothers are managing a “double‑shift” of work and home responsibilities that leave them mentally and emotionally exhausted.

Our cultural expectation that women should be both high‑achieving professionals and seamless caregivers (at home and work) increases cortisol, co-occurs with higher rates of hypertension, anxiety and low mood, and often pushes otherwise healthy women to their psychological limits. I know from experience the feeling of overwhelm and the pressure to be successful and how hard this is. It’s not because “we can't handle it”, we’re simply juggling everything: high-pressure jobs, caregiving at home, redundancy setbacks, dwindling sense of purpose or the discomfort of retirement transition. Life has demanded more than ever and many women feel stuck, exhausted and alone in it.

Why women today carry more, yet feel stuck more often

• The “second shift”, or “mental load,” is still a heavy default

Surveys consistently show that women spend 30–40% more time than men caregiving, household-managing, and handling emotional bookkeeping (“forgotten tasks” like planning meals, scheduling, coordinating). As one expert put it: the workforce is still “designed for men’s work rhythms, but we’re expected to do our lives around it” .

• Gender bias, stereotype threat, and emotional labour burn you without you seeing it

Women’s constant need to prove competence in male-dominated spaces, while also performing emotional labor, drives burnout. Research in nursing and leadership shows women deliberately “mask” frustration or fear to seem composed; that surface‑acting is a strong predictor of emotional exhaustion and intention to leave, even among top performers.

• Midlife role conflict - or “what’s next” anxiety for those nearing major transitions

Women in their mid-40s to early 60s often face multiple stressors: care for aging parents, financial strain, role uncertainty after career endings or redundancy. Studies show their mental health dips not just after retirement, but years before—as the anticipated loss of routine, purpose, or status begins impacting mood and confidence.

The truth behind “empowerment” today: is it a burden, not a gift?

High-achieving women are more likely to:

• Feel guilty for resting

• Deny needing time off until their brain "crashes"

• Over-rely on willpower to push through continuously

Nearly half (46 %) of women surveyed said they’d "thought about stepping back or exiting the workforce" entirely, twice the rate of their male peers. Even as women climb, that climb alone often costs the ability to enjoy the view.

Burnout isn’t failure. It's a signal: "Pause. Something in this ‘soaring’ script no longer works." Wanting purpose or “to have it all” doesn’t make you too much, it makes you human. Choosing what to carry back with you after pause, rather than what broke you, is the brave act.

If you find yourself ready to step off the autopilot, even for four days, to feel lighter, think clearer, and return more anchored than you’ve felt in years, you’re not making time for luxury. You’re funding your next level: a version of you not exhausted by growth, but empowered by revisions.