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Adaptive Humans™ is the podcast for real talk and intentional growth. Hosted by Jami de Lou, each episode blends meaningful stories with practical tools you can use in your next meeting, tough conversation, or high-pressure moment—and just as easily in everyday life. Together, we’ll explore how to work with emotions instead of against them, bridge differences with respect, and steady ourselves when stress runs high. With signature segments like Beyond the Bio, Brave Enough Moment, and Just Be Reset, this podcast invites you to practice adaptability in the moments that matter most.
[00:08] Jami De Lou:
Welcome back to Adaptive Humans—the podcast for real talk and intentional growth. I'm your host, Jami De Lou.
Around here, we return to three anchors:
1. How we navigate our emotions
2. How we adapt across differences
3. How we steady ourselves when stress or triggers show up
Because that’s what helps us stay human when life gets real.
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[00:40] What's Today’s Topic?
Today, we’re digging into something so many of us are experiencing right now—even if we don’t always have the language for it. It’s called change fatigue.
And I’m not talking about the corporate buzzword—I’m talking about the human experience that shows up in our bodies, in our cultures, and in our emotional bandwidth.
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[01:02] What Is Change Fatigue?
Recent research describes change fatigue as:
“A state of exhaustion, apathy, or resignation caused by continuous rapid or overlapping organizational changes that outstrip people’s psychological resources.”
In other words, things move faster than we can adapt, and we don’t get time to recover before the next shift hits. It can show up as:
• Stress
• Overwhelm
• Reduced motivation
• Lower productivity
• Resistance to new initiatives
• Growing absenteeism or turnover
And the 2025 data is sounding the alarm:
• Gallagher’s 2025 Employee Communications Report found that 44% of HR leaders view change fatigue as one of the top five barriers to achieving their goals.
• A 2025 survey summarized by Wiley warns of a cascade effect: constant change + rising stress → crisis in engagement, mental health, and performance—unless leaders intervene.
But here’s the thing—leaders are human too. They’re also navigating the same constant change in society, work, and family.
So today, through our three segments—Beyond the Bio, Brave Enough Moment, and the Just Be Reset—we’re going to go deeper into how change fatigue shows up, how it impacts us, and what we can do about it.
Let’s get into it.
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Beyond the Bio
I want to share a personal story to bring this topic to life—especially in this busy end-of-year season.
This past month has been a swirl of travel, caregiving, grief, supporting clients, podcast production, and continuing my work in leadership development.
My calendar looked like a Tetris board that someone shook mid-game.
Normally, I’d just double down. Grind through. Make it all happen. That’s something I’ve been known for.
But this time—it hit differently.
I found myself staring at a blank cursor, trying to ideate, trying to create... reading the same sentence over and over—and nothing was landing.
Not because the work was hard—but because my capacity was gone.
There I was, setting up a podcast recording in a hotel room, telling myself:
“My podcast is called Adaptive Humans. I can adapt.”
And then, the internal critic shows up:
“Come on Jami, focus. You’ve done harder things than this.”
In fact, one of my close friends messaged me, “You can do hard things, Jami.”
And I responded, “Yes, I can. But I also want the universe to know—I welcome ease.”
Because the truth wasn’t about discipline—it was about the load.
Clients were stretched. My family was in deep grief and transition. My community—my tribe—was losing elders.
My father-in-law just became an ancestor. And over the last four years, I’ve lost nearly a dozen elders. Five in the last year alone.
This is compounding grief. And when layered with workplace change fatigue and societal shifts—it’s a lot. I know I’m not the only one feeling this.
Even if it’s not grief from loss, many of us are carrying compounding change—in our homes, our work, and in society.
So when I chose to pause the podcast and reassess everything on my plate, I reminded myself:
Change fatigue isn’t about motivation. It’s about humanness.
I had to practice what I preach. I looked at my commitments and paused what I had control over.
Because here’s what I want you to hear:
Most people aren’t resisting change.
They’re resisting the cost of constant change—without time to recover.
If there’s anything on your plate that you can pause, even just a little, give yourself that breathing room.
The boundaries are worth it. They will help you keep going.
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Brave Enough Moment
This is the action before clarity—because countering change fatigue requires honesty.
Here’s your Brave Enough moment:
Tell the truth about your capacity before your body tells it for you.
Every December, leaders say:
• “Let’s sprint to the finish line.”
• “We’ll rest after the break.”
• “This is our busy season.”
But here’s what people are actually experiencing:
• Nervous system overload
• Emotional residue from the year
• Cultural expectations around holidays and caregiving
• Collective grief
• Identity fatigue
• Unspoken fear around layoffs or instability
• Shrinking bandwidth
Leaders often misread this as resistance, disengagement, or apathy—when really, it's a human threshold.
So ask yourself:
• What do I have capacity for?
• What needs to wait?
• Where am I pretending I’m fine?
• What are the invisible costs of the pace I’m sustaining?
Slowing down is an action.
Saying “This can wait” is an action.
Choosing sustainable pacing is leadership.
If we want to counter change fatigue, we must normalize:
• “I’m at capacity.”
• “Let’s recalibrate.”
• “Let’s reprioritize.”
• Or that classic: “Let’s circle back to this in January.” (And this time—let’s mean it.)
That’s not weakness.
That’s real leadership.
That’s human-centered teamwork.
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Just Be Reset
These are the practical, inclusive, nervous-system-grounded tools you can use right now.
Here are 3 simple resets to help you regulate and recover from change fatigue—especially in this season.
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Reset #1: Pick One Thing That Matters
Not five. Just one.
Ask:
“What’s one thing that, if done, reduces my mental load this week?”
This is especially powerful for:
• Caregivers
• First-gen professionals
• Leaders holding emotional labor
• Anyone navigating multiple cultural roles
Reducing overwhelm starts with reducing competing priorities.
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Reset #2: Name Your Real Capacity Out Loud
Try:
• “I can take this on—but not this week.”
• “I need clarity before I can move.”
• “I’m not ignoring you. I’m just at capacity. Can we revisit this later?”
• “I can offer feedback next Tuesday—does that work for you?”
When you name your limits, you:
• Prevent burnout
• Model emotional intelligence
• Build trust in your team, family, and community
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Reset #3: 30-Second Micro-Regulation Check-In
Take 30 seconds:
• Notice your breath
• Drop your shoulders
• Soften your jaw
• Put your feet flat on the floor
• Ask: What do I need right now?
This is not just self-care.
It’s nervous system maintenance.
It changes how you lead, communicate, and adapt.
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Final Thoughts
Change fatigue isn’t a flaw.
It’s not failure.
It’s the natural human response to prolonged uncertainty, emotional labor, cultural weight, and an unrelenting pace.
But the good news?
You don’t have to push through it.
You can respond to it.
You can honor it.
You can re-interpret it.
You can sit with it.
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Thank you for joining me on Adaptive Humans today.
If this episode supported you, please share it with someone in your network. And join me next week for an end-of-year wrap-up grounding moment—to help you reset before we move into the new year and all those holiday festivities.
Until then, take good care of yourself.
And as always:
I am brave. I am enough. I am brave enough. And so are you.
This is Adaptive Humans—real talk, intentional growth.