Burnout, Brain Science, and Decision-Making for Highly Sensitive People

In today’s episode, I’m joined by international HSP researcher, author, and speaker Esther Bergsma. We explore what really happens inside the highly sensitive brain — and why so many sensitive people experience burnout, overwhelm, and self-doubt around decision-making.

Esther shares her research on how HSPs process information more deeply, and how that can lead to exhaustion if we don’t understand and support our brains. This conversation is packed with science, validation, and practical tools for recovery.

Esther shares:

• Her burnout story and how discovering she was an HSP changed everything.
• Why HSPs are sometimes “slow” at making decisions.
• The neurological differences in the highly sensitive brain.
• Why overstimulation leads to irritability.
• How empathy and depth of processing show up uniquely in HSPs.
• The link between brain activity and burnout.
• Why rest isn’t optional but essential for HSPs.

Topics covered:

• HSP traits and identity through research.
• Decision-making as an HSP.
• Brain science and sensory processing sensitivity.
• Burnout recovery and nervous system health.
• Energy management and emotional overload.
• Rest and regulation strategies.
• Social overwhelm and people-pleasing.
• Working environments that drain HSPs.
• Boundaries and advocating for your needs.

About Esther Bergsma:

Esther Bergsma (MSc) is a social science researcher and expert on high sensitivity from the Netherlands. She is bestselling author of The Brain of the Highly Sensitive Person and several Dutch books on high sensitivity. She trains professionals in understanding and guiding HSPs better. From teachers, to counsellors, therapists and managers. Esther is international keynote speaker known for her comprehensible way to explain scientific findings. 

Follow along with Esther’s journey:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esther-bergsma-1896327/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoogsensitief.nl/

Website: https://hoogsensitief.nl/category/english-blogs/

Let’s Connect:

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📩 Want to be a guest on the show? Reach out to Kimberly at: kmarshall@happyhspcoaching.com

📖 Learn about Kimberly’s work: happyhspcoaching.com

About Kimberly:

Kimberly Marshall is a career coach for highly sensitive people (HSPs) and host of The Happy HSP Podcast. After 20 years in the publishing industry working for companies like Time Inc., Monster.com, and W. W. Norton, she left her corporate career to pursue work that better suited her HSP needs. She now helps HSPs overcome burnout and low confidence in the workplace and create gentle and nurturing careers that bring them lots of purpose, meaning, and joy.

Through her work and creative ventures, Kimberly hopes to shed more light on the reality of living with high sensitivity and inspire more HSPs to embrace their empathetic, loving, and gentle natures.

• Hosted/produced by Kimberly Marshall
• Edited by Fonzie Try Media
• Artwork by Tara Corola
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