Anxiety
High Functioning Anxiety in Senior Leaders
We work with senior leaders living with chronic anxiety they have learned to perform around, so the mental tape finally quiets and sleep comes back.
- Executive Psychotherapist
- Master Hypnotherapist and NLP Coach
- 1,000+ Clients Transformed
About this work
What the work on anxiety with Nicky Anstey actually involves
This page is for senior leaders, founders and high functioning professionals living with anxiety that does not show up in their performance but very much shows up in their nervous system. Nicky Anstey is a multi award-winning Executive Psychotherapist and Master Hypnotherapist whose practice integrates psychotherapy, hypnotherapy and NLP through the trademarked Rewire Method.
The work on anxiety here addresses both the daily experience (broken sleep, overthinking, racing mind) and the unconscious pattern generating it. For the named service-level page, see anxiety coaching.
What high functioning anxiety actually looks like
External composure. Internal hum that never switches off.
You meet deadlines. You hold the team. You deliver. From the outside, nothing looks wrong. Internally, the tape is always running. Did I say the right thing. Are they annoyed. Am I falling behind. Is something about to go wrong.
You might have had doctors tell you everything looks fine. You might never have been formally diagnosed. You might have convinced yourself it is just how you are. It is not. It is a pattern, and it is rewirable.
Underneath usually sits some mix of perfectionism, people pleasing, and a nervous system that has not had real recovery for a long time. Anxiety travels in the wider mental optimisation cluster with stress, low mood and extreme pressure.
How the work moves
High Functioning Anxiety in Senior Leaders
Inside the Rewire Method, anxiety is addressed on three levels at once. The right tool is used for the right block. Hypnotherapy reaches the unconscious response. Psychotherapy works the roots. NLP changes state in specific moments. Performance nutrition supports the biology.
What this work tends to shift:
- A racing mind that does not switch off after work.
- Broken sleep, early waking, tight chest, muscle tension.
- Constant low-level dread with no clear cause.
- Overthinking and replaying conversations long after they have ended.
- Inability to rest properly even when there is space to rest.
- Panic responses around speaking, difficult conversations, big moments.
Important. This is not a replacement for medical care. If you are in acute clinical anxiety, Nicky will help you identify the right route on the Reset Call.
Clients whose tape went quiet
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“I just wanted to say how transformational my sessions have been with Nicky and I would wholeheartedly recommend her.”
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“The most powerful timeline work I’ve ever done – gentle, insightful, and deeply effective. Nicky is truly the best.”
How You Can Work with Nicky
Nicky works with a small number of clients at any one time. Every engagement is delivered by her directly, with no associates and no handoffs. Most clients begin with a Reset Call and from there choose the right programme together.
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See Rewire Coaching
Rewire Coaching
The signature one to one programme, built on the trademarked Rewire Method. Where most clients begin.
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See Executive Coaching
Executive Coaching
For founders, directors and senior leaders at the top of their field who refuse to pay for performance with their health.
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See High Performance Coaching
High Performance Coaching
For high achievers who already perform and want the inner state to match the outer results.
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See Leadership Coaching
Leadership Coaching
For leaders who feel the weight of every decision and want to lead from a steadier place.
Succeed Beyond Your Limits
Twenty minutes with Nicky, one to one. No pitch. Honest conversation. If her work is the right fit, she will say. If it is not, she will say that too.
Why Nicky
Why Work With Nicky Anstey
She has lived it. Nicky experienced severe burnout during her own corporate career, then built her businesses through significant personal and health challenges. The story is not background. It is the reason the work goes deeper than most coaching.
She has the qualifications to go deep. Nicky is a qualified Executive Psychotherapist, Master NLP Coach, Master Hypnotherapist, Master Life and Business Coach, and a Registered Nutritionist aligned with medicine. Five disciplines inside one practitioner. Most coaches hold one.
She has the results. Over 1,000 clients have worked with Nicky and gone through the trademarked Rewire Method. Reduced pressure, clearer thinking, stronger leadership, healthier lives.
She is not a generalist. Nicky works specifically with high-achieving business owners and senior leaders. The people who others assume are fine, because they are still performing. Read more about Nicky here.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is high functioning anxiety
A pattern of chronic anxiety in someone who is still visibly performing in work or life. Often invisible to the outside world. No less real for that.
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Is this different from anxiety coaching
This page describes the condition and how Nicky’s work addresses it. Anxiety coaching is the named service page for the same work.
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Do I need a diagnosis to work with Nicky
No.
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Will I have to come off my medication
No. Decisions about medication remain between you and your doctor.
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How quickly will I feel different
Most clients describe a shift within the first few sessions. Deeper rewiring takes longer.
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Online or in person
Both. Most clients work online.
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Can my company sponsor this
Yes.
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Is this the same as Rewire Coaching
It uses the Rewire Method, with anxiety as the focus.
Working Across the UK and Internationally
Most one to one work is delivered online, which means Nicky works with business owners and senior leaders across the United Kingdom, Europe and internationally. In person engagements are arranged by appointment for corporate workshops and select programmes.
Transform to Perform Coaching
Godalming, Surrey, UK
Ready to Book Your Reset Call
Twenty minutes, one to one with Nicky
Share a little about what is going on. Nicky reads every enquiry personally.
Book your free Reset Call
No obligation. Confidential. 20 minute call. Fit check for both of us.
Case Study
[PLACEHOLDER. Senior leader with a sleep or mental-tape outcome]
[PLACEHOLDER. Short story in Nicky’s voice.]