Stress Physiology & Recovery Capacity
When your body can’t return to baseline
Many people I work with aren’t just stressed.
They’re living in systems that struggle to recover — even after rest, sleep, or doing “less”.
This often shows up as delayed crashes, feeling wired but exhausted, worsening symptoms after exertion or busy days, or a sense that the body never fully resets.
If your symptoms intensify after demand rather than during it, this pattern may be central to what’s going on.
What this pattern often looks like
People with reduced recovery capacity often recognise some of the following:
Feeling wired, flat, or exhausted at the same time
Difficulty relaxing, even when resting
Crashing hours or days after physical, cognitive, or emotional demand
Symptoms worsening 12–48 hours after exertion
Exercise or social activity that once helped now makes things worse
Poor tolerance to pushing, optimising, or “building resilience”
A sense that your system is always bracing for the next thing
These patterns are not a lack of motivation or resilience.
They reflect stress physiology that no longer resolves efficiently.
Why common approaches don’t always help
Stress is often framed as something to manage mentally.
But physiological stress is cumulative — and when recovery capacity is limited, even positive or enjoyable activities can become stressors.
In this state:
Pushing harder increases instability
Forcing rest without regulation doesn’t restore function
Exercise, breathwork, or nervous system tools can backfire if poorly timed
This is why people are often told to “pace better”, yet still feel stuck.
The issue isn’t effort or mindset.
It’s that the system lacks the conditions needed to return to baseline.
How I approach stress physiology and recovery
I don’t treat stress as a psychological problem to overcome.
I look at:
How the nervous system responds to demand
Whether recovery signals are completing properly
How immune activity, metabolism, sleep, and breathing are influencing stress load
Where compensatory patterns are keeping the system activated
From there, the focus is on:
Restoring the ability to downshift predictably
Reducing hidden sources of physiological load
Rebuilding recovery capacity gradually, not forcefully
Sequencing activity and intervention so the system can respond safely
This work often needs to happen before gut protocols, immune interventions, or hormonal optimisation can be tolerated.
Who this approach is especially suited for
This way of working may be appropriate if:
You crash after effort rather than during it
Exercise or busy days leave you worse, not better
You’ve been told to “push through” and deteriorated
Rest alone doesn’t resolve fatigue
Your symptoms escalated after prolonged stress, illness, burnout, or trauma
Many people with this pattern also recognise themselves in the other system profiles.
How to start
If this description resonates, the best place to begin is a personalised consult.
This allows me to assess your recovery capacity, identify what’s maintaining physiological stress, and decide what needs stabilising first — rather than layering interventions the system can’t yet integrate.
You may also find the Gut & Metabolic Tolerance or Immune & Inflammatory Reactivity pages helpful.