Picture an optometrist who’s running behind on a full clinic day. Insurance questions, scan reviews, and a waiting patient all vie for attention. Her shoulders are tensing, her breathing becoming shallow, and routine choices taking longer than usual. 

These subtle physical and mental cues - tight muscles and hurried thoughts - all signal that stress is building. Put simply, this stress is the body’s internal alarm system, alerting us when demands start to outpace resources.

Stress isn’t a flaw in the system. In the words of executive coach and communications expert, Angela Evans, it’s a built-in feedback loop. 

During OWL’s Stress and Burnout virtual program, Angela explained that these built-in red flags are your body’s way of saying, “Something needs your attention.” In short bursts, those signals sharpen focus. When we override it day after day, those brief alerts snowball into exhaustion, fight-flight-freeze reactions, and decision fatigue. 

Left unmanaged, everyday stress can harden into burnout. 

The World Health Organization now classifies burnout as an occupational phenomenon marked by exhaustion, cynicism, and declining effectiveness, outcomes Angela sees whenever stress signals are ignored.

Recognizing the Spiral

Angela describes burnout as “bigger than exhaustion.” Work that once energized you now feels dull and accomplishments barely register. Should the spiral go unchecked, it risks compromising patient care, team cohesion, and personal health. On a personal level, research from the Mayo Clinic links prolonged burnout to insomnia, cardiovascular risk, and depression.

The RESET Toolkit

To stop the burnout slide early, Angela introduced her RESET toolkit. This is a collection of five mini-steps you can complete between appointments or Zoom calls. 

R - Relax the body

E - Exhale

S - Shift your mindset

E - Engage in the present

T - Take action

Used regularly, RESET interrupts the stress cycle, lowers heart rate, and restores mental clarity, all with no meditation cushion required!

On an individual level, clinicians and staff can use quick body-mind resets, micro-breaks, and reflection prompts to regain calm and focus during the day. At the organizational level, leaders can implement clear workload boundaries, role clarity, and modeled recovery behaviors that foster a healthy, productive culture and protect team members from chronic stress.

Angela’s session weaves these two layers into a practical roadmap, showing how individual RESET moments and organizational safeguards combine to create lasting resilience.

Members-Only Access

The full recording, slides, and worksheet are available in OWL’s member portal alongside past sessions on leadership, negotiation, and inclusive team culture. If you’re not yet a member, consider joining us to tap into these practical resources and a network dedicated to advancing eyecare careers.

Stress will always come calling. It’s an unavoidable part of a busy practice. Yet with practical tools, like Angela’s RESET toolkit, clear boundaries, and a culture that supports recovery, those knocks stay manageable reminders rather than full-scale intrusions. 

Equip yourself and your team, and you’ll keep stress in check while maintaining a focused, healthy workplace.