Episode 40

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Published on:

7th Sep 2025

Success Without Peace: The High-Achiever’s Survival Trap

Ashley’s story will gut-punch every high-achieving woman who’s still stuck in the loop of “do more, be more, achieve more.” From Ivy League pressure to building a dream business while traveling the world, Ashley had it all—except peace.

  • ✈️ Built a global business but couldn’t feel free inside
  • 🧠 Trapped in thought spirals and emotional shutdowns
  • 🧘‍♀️ Discovered mindset hacks weren’t enough—healing her nervous system was key
  • 🔁 Created her RESET and Reinvention frameworks
  • 🛑 Why high performance often masks unresolved trauma
  • 🔥 What to do when you realize hustle is your addiction


🎙️ What We Talk About:

  • The dark side of high achievement and burnout
  • Childhood roots of perfectionism and overachievement
  • Traveling the world but feeling mentally trapped
  • Why "mindset work" didn’t work—and what finally did
  • The RESET framework for nervous system healing
  • Identity reinvention beyond success
  • Giving yourself permission to pause


🔑 Key Takeaways:

“You can build the dream—but you have to feel safe enough to live it.”
“Your nervous system doesn’t care how impressive your life looks.”
“More achievement won’t fix a dysregulated identity.
“Ease isn’t earned. It’s embodied.”


🙌 Why This Episode Matters:

This episode dismantles the toxic illusion that success = safety. It’s for the woman who keeps reaching new milestones but still feels like she’s drowning in pressure and shame. Ashley’s story proves that thriving isn’t about doing more—it’s about finally feeling enough.


If you’ve ever wondered, “Why am I still not happy?” — this one’s for you.


💬 Connect with Ashley:

📸 Instagram: @otheplacesashgoes

💻 Work With Ashley: DM her on Instagram or explore her program The Ease Effect


🔗 Resources & Links:


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About the Podcast

Survival Mode Disrupted with Leticia R Francis
Disruptive Unapologetic Conversations about Survival Mode
Survival Mode Disrupted is not just a podcast. It's a rebellion.

A raw, unfiltered space where we finally stop pretending we're fine and start telling the truth—the truth about the trauma we've carried, the identities they had to wear to survive, and the radical decisions we made to break free.

Because here's the deal: survival mode isn’t just a season. It’s a damn identity. One that so many were forced to adopt just to get through life, to stay safe, to stay needed, to stay sane. But eventually, it starts costing you more than it protects. Your peace. Your purpose. Your power.

This podcast is for the disruptors—the people who were told to stay small, stay silent, stay grateful for crumbs… and said “hell no.”

Hosted by Leticia, The Survival Mode Disruptor herself—a trauma recovery mentor, speaker, and woman who has lived through the fires of abuse, betrayal, and breakdown and still chose to rise—this show dives deep into the unapologetic exits from survival mode that no one talks about.

You’ll hear from women (and a few brave men) who walked away from toxic relationships, soul-sucking careers, generational dysfunction, religious trauma, cultural expectations, and the lies they were taught to believe about themselves. Not because it was easy—but because staying would’ve killed something sacred inside of them.

These are the stories of bold pivots, quiet courage, and messy but miraculous rebirths.

Each episode is a conversation—a disruption—meant to wake something up in you. Whether it’s a guest sharing the moment they chose themselves for the first time, or Leticia dropping a truth bomb that makes you question everything you’ve normalized, this podcast is here to shake the foundation of your survival mode identity and replace it with something truer. Something freer.

We’re not here for surface-level self-care tips or fake empowerment slogans.

We’re here to talk about what it really takes to:

Reclaim your voice after being silenced.

Reinvent yourself after being broken down.

Rewrite your story when everyone else wants you to stay the same.

Release the guilt of choosing YOU.

This is for those who are done performing. Done pleasing. Done pretending.

It’s for the ones ready to exit survival mode—not slowly, not quietly, but disruptively and unapologetically.

You won’t leave this podcast the same.
You’ll cry. You’ll rage. You’ll laugh.
You’ll see yourself in every story.
And more importantly, you’ll remember who the hell you are.

Welcome to Survival Mode Disrupted.
It’s not just a podcast.
It’s a movement.
And your exit begins here.

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About your host

Profile picture for Leticia Francis

Leticia Francis

I am not here to inspire you—I am here to activate you.

As a Survivor, Keynote Speaker, and Trauma Recovery Mentor, I know what it’s like to fight battles no one sees. I also know that breaking free is possible. My work is about disrupting survival mode, exposing trauma-driven success cycles, and giving women the blueprint to reclaim their lives.

🔹 200+ podcast features & speaking engagements
🔹 Global Women of Choice Award Winner 2022
🔹 Creator of the Survival Mode Exit Plan
🔹 Host of Survival Mode Disrupted Podcast