How to Deal with Burnout: Finding Meaning, Purpose and Clarity Through Nature

Burnout can creep in long before you realise something is wrong. In this episode, I sit down with John Duffy, an engineer-turned-regenerative farmer, to explore why high achievement, constant pressure, and disconnect from nature silently push people toward physical and emotional collapse. He shares how years in the oil and gas industry, chronic stress cycles, and a life-altering moment in a woodland ecosystem forced him to rethink success, health, and what it means to feel grounded. We talk about why modern lifestyles make burnout so common, how the body signals imbalance long before burnout hits, and why reconnecting with nature, community, and purposeful work can reset your entire life. This is a grounded, honest conversation about clarity, resilience, and the turning points that guide you back to yourself when life becomes unsustainable. #burnoutrecovery #stressmanagement #mentalhealth #highperformancehabits #regenerativeagriculture #natureconnection #emotionalwellbeing #resilience #mindbodyconnection #sustainableliving #humanexperience #realstories #lifeanddepth #wellbeingjourney #podcast ============================ Chapters: 00:00 – Intro: How burnout led John to regenerative farming 04:38 – The moment that shifted his worldview 07:32 – Leaving oil and gas after years of stress 09:52 – Losing his father and rethinking purpose 12:13 – Learning regenerative agriculture around the world 15:19 – Holistic management explained simply 17:09 – Transforming poor land into healthy soil 20:24 – Water, nutrients, and why soil health matters 23:00 – Why conventional farming often leads to burnout 26:39 – How modern agriculture became fragile 28:22 – The grazing method that actually works 31:35 – Helping farmers transition without losing income 33:16 – Humans as part of nature, not separate from it 36:00 – Food quality, nutrition, and long-term health 41:56 – The comfort crisis and chronic stress 44:17 – Nature, recovery, and mental clarity 50:21 – What farming taught him about resilience 53:54 – Burnout, priorities, and mental bandwidth 59:26 – Rebuilding community and human connection 01:01:56 – Ancestral skills and reconnecting to the land 01:13:00 – Deer pressure and restoring native woodlands 01:17:00 – Why wild Irish venison is misunderstood 01:19:46 – Creating the Wild & Co protein bar 01:23:21 – Kickstarter launch and the future of Wild & Co 01:25:15 – Final thoughts and where to find John ============================ Instagram:   / ryanhalfway   TikTok:   / ryanhalfway   X: https://x.com/ryanhalfway Subscribe to Life & Depth for weekly deep dives into the human experience ============================ Welcome to Life & Depth Podcast with Ryan McDaid. This is the place where surface-level conversations go to die. I started this channel because I was tired of the "highlight reel" version of life we see online. I wanted the raw, unfiltered truth. My mission is simple: to explore the extremes of the human experience through deep conversations, radical honesty, and resilient storytelling on my podcast. What You Can Expect: Based in the heart of the North West of Ireland, I sit down with people who have lived extraordinary lives, survivors, soldiers, fighters, healers, and entrepreneurs. We don't just talk about "what" they did, we dig into "why" they did it and "how" they survived it. Whether I'm talking to a man who spent years in prison during the conflict, a mother healing herself from chronic illness, or a CEO building a legacy, the goal remains the same: To find light in the darkest places. Join the conversation.