What happens when leaving was the only way to survive? 💙

In this powerful conversation, Cyndi Bennett sits down with Resilient Career Academy member Jenny Gardner — a 30-year social work veteran who hit her breaking point and chose herself. This is a raw, honest coffee chat about burnout, toxic workplaces, and what healing actually looks like.

🎙️ What You’ll Hear:

✅ How 30 years of vicarious trauma finally caught up with Jenny

✅ What it feels like to manage others when your own leadership gets no support

✅ The moment Jenny chose homelessness over staying in a toxic job

✅ Why detoxing between jobs is not optional — it’s essential

✅ How your nervous system knows before your brain does that it’s not safe

✅ What the “emotional backlog” is and why it follows you everywhere

✅ Why building a business as a trauma survivor requires a completely different pace

💡 Key Truth:

You can’t heal if the abuse is still happening. Sometimes leaving isn’t giving up — it’s the bravest thing you can do.

📞 Free Discovery Call: https://calendly.com/cyndibennettconsulting/30min?month=2026-05

🎯 cyndibennettconsulting.com

(Trauma-informed support built specifically for where you are)

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👍 Like if Jenny’s story reminded you of your own.

💬 Comment — what was your “I have to leave” moment?

Your Trauma-Wise Career Guide | Episode 55

Cyndi Bennett | Trauma-Informed Career Coach | Resilient Career Academy

⏱️ Time Chapters:

00:00 Welcome & Guest Introduction

01:00 Jenny’s 30-Year Career in Child Welfare

02:00 The Last Three Years: White Knuckling It

04:00 Managing Others Without Trauma-Informed Leadership

06:00 How Jenny Started Finding Support

07:30 Servant Leadership: Being Yoked With Your Team

09:30 What Drew Jenny to the Resilient Career Academy

10:30 The Hypocrisy of Non-Trauma-Informed Trauma Training

12:00 The Training That Triggered a Panic Attack

14:00 Secondary Trauma & Compassion Fatigue in Human Services

16:00 The Emotional Labor of Reliving Trauma Through Documentation

19:00 The Decision to Leave: “I’d Rather Be Homeless”

22:00 Strategic Exit vs. Knee-Jerk Flight Response

25:00 Cashing Out Retirement to Choose Herself

26:30 The Detox Period: Doing Nothing on Purpose

28:00 Processing the Emotional Backlog of 30 Years

30:00 Trauma’s Weight in the Workplace: The Rucksack Metaphor

33:00 The Light Returning After Leaving

34:00 Starting a Business: Who Am I Now?

36:00 Identity After Trauma: Discovering What You Want

39:00 The Refining Journey of Entrepreneurship

42:00 Taking a Temp Job to Breathe — Then Another Red Flag

50:00 Setting Boundaries & Getting Fired for It

56:00 Trusting Your Nervous System in the Workplace

01:00:00 Gaslighting Your Own Body: Learning to Feel Again

01:02:00 What the Resilient Career Academy Gave Jenny

01:08:00 The Gas Station Metaphor: Letting the Ground Breathe

01:11:00 Jenny’s Message to Listeners & How to Connect

01:12:00 Closing Encouragement