“I had all the tools in my toolkit — and I still couldn’t fix it. That’s when I realised: maybe the goal isn’t fixing. Maybe it’s feeling.” — Tahnée Sanders
In this episode, I sit down with Tahnée Sanders — messaging strategist, deep thinker, and co-founder of Unwind Co — for a raw and richly layered conversation about the lived experience of high-functioning anxiety, and the slow, brave unraveling that brought her back to herself.
Tahnée shares her path from early success and burnout as Australia’s youngest female newspaper editor, through a panic attack that forced her to pause, to years of inner work that dissolved perfectionism, softened control, and redefined her relationship with success, safety, and self-worth.
Together, we explore the invisible emotional load carried by high-achieving women — and what becomes possible when we stop performing and start integrating.
This episode is an invitation for anyone who looks successful on the outside, but still feels stuck inside — and is ready to loosen the grip and live from a deeper truth.
Today on Limitless:
- When high-achieving becomes high-functioning anxiety: the panic attack that cracked everything open
- Control as a safety strategy: the hidden hyper-vigilant parts that quietly run the show
- The illusion of safety nets: why backup plans can feel smart — but keep you stuck
- You can’t out-talk trauma: when therapy loops stop working, and what works instead
- The hard work = worth myth: how identity gets entangled in performance and productivity
- From boundaries to burnout to breakthrough: relearning what it means to say no
- Letting go of fixing: reframing anxiety as something to meet, not erase
- When the backpack’s too heavy: what happens when we finally put it down and look inside
Creativity as nervous system repair: joy, play, and purpose as access points to healing
Flow that doesn’t require force: what ease actually feels like — and how to allow more of it
Connect with Tahnée:
The Strategy Studio
Website: www.thestrategystudio.com
Instagram: @thestrategystudio
Unwind Co
Website: www.unwindco.com.auInstagram: @theunwindco
Connect with Fiona Walsh
Private Coaching + Nervous System and Identity Recalibration for High-Achievers
Work with me: www.fionawalsh.co
Instagram: @fionawalshcoaching
Email: fiona@fionawalshconsulting.com
Regulate and Rise Somatic Masterclass: From Fear to Freedom
Nov 1/2 (US/CAN), Nov 2-3 (AUS) - Sign up here
If you've done the work, built the life, and still feel the quiet hum of anxiety underneath — this episode is your invitation to soften, surrender, and finally feel safe in your own skin. It’s not about fixing yourself. It’s about coming home to the parts of you that never felt safe to soften — until now.
