Why Your $500K Salary Can't Stop the Panic Attacks

Why Your $500K Salary Can't Stop the Panic Attacks

Somatic Therapy NYC for High Achievers

The hedge fund manager sat across from me, Patagonia vest perfectly pressed, checking his phone between breaths.

"I meditate every morning at 5am," David said.

"I've done ayahuasca in Peru.

I have a therapist, a coach, and a nutritionist.

So why do I still feel like I'm drowning?"

His Apple Watch lit up. His jaw clenched. His eyes open, wide.

"There," I said softly. "That's why."

When Success Becomes a Survival Strategy

David had built a $500 million fund by age 35.

But his nervous system was still trading like it was 2008—every notification a potential catastrophe, every pause a threat to survival.

This is what I see in my somatic therapy NYC practice: brilliant minds trapped in activated bodies.

People who can analyze their patterns perfectly but can't stop living them.

We slowed down to notice what was feeding the panic- and where the pressure was coming from. We went earlier than 2008 and into his inner world, and there we found, a loud critical voice; the voice of his father.

Daddy was a caring man but also demanded unrealistic expectations from his kids, especially his oldest son, David.

"I know my father's criticism shouldn't still affect me," David continued. "I make more in a day than he made in a year. But still, I can see his disapproving look and his brows furrow, playing in my mind’s eye. Like I should be doing more." His voice trailed off.

David had shared about what it was like in his home, being raised by a father who expressed care by pushing the kids to do their best. David was the oldest son so he felt the most pressure to “perform” in order to get dad’s approval.

"Your brain knows that you’ve outlived his [and your] expectations, " I replied..

"But your nervous system is still trying to earn his approval through achievement.”

That is an old formula that you learned when you were seven: that achievement will get you the safety of daddy’s love- and it’s still living in you.”.

David’s eyes filled with tears.

For years, he would desperately seek daddy’s approval and no matter how hard he tried, at school, or in sports, never got that nod of approval he waited for.

So instead of letting go, he just kept trying harder.

And that 7 year old was still running the ship - which was why the panic was so strong in his body. His 7 year old needed to know that he is no longer little, and can find approval and support from other people and places.

Over the next few months we worked with the 7 year old part using parts work and somatic work. Slowly, we helped David process through trapped beliefs, emotions and sensations so he could feel into the person he was today. And the safety he had in his life, and the healthier, adult version relationship he had with dad.

David’s adult self had learned [and was continuing] to set boundaries with dad- where he performed at work to take care of his family and be responsible, and not merely for his dad’s approval.

It was hard work, but it was the only doorway to real freedom.

Mental Freedom, Emotional Freedom and Freedom from the Panic that Plagued him.

His goal was this: to work out of passion and responsibility without unconsciously looking over his shoulder for approval.

How Somatic Therapy Tools Finally Offers Relief [to High Performers]

We started with interoception- felt sense of internal experience that most New Yorkers have learned to override:

Here are a few of the exercises we used throughout our treatment.

The Hand On Heart Practice:

- Hand on heart, feeling the rhythm

- Breathing at 5 seconds in, 5 seconds out

- Creating heart rate variability that signals safety

- Not just calm, but resilient readiness

The Proprioceptive Reset:

- Weighted shoulder wrap during sessions (15 lbs)

- Activates deep pressure receptors

- Tells the nervous system where you end and the world begins

- Especially powerful for those who've lost sense of self in achievement

The Titrated Freeze Release:

Instead of pushing through freeze states, we worked with them:

- Notice the immobility without judging

- Find the tiniest movement possible (even just imagining it)

- Let that movement grow organically

- Watch freeze transform into healthy action

The Real Breakthrough is When the Body Leads the Mind

Six weeks in, David arrived different. A Loosened Energy. Present in his skin.

"Something weird happened," he said. "I was in a partner meeting, about to close a huge deal. But my body—instead of leaning in with a “fully body yes”, it contracted.

Like a full-body “no.”

So I turned to them, and said I needed 24 hours."

He paused, still amazed.

"After a few hours, my team found a fatal flaw in the structure. If I had gone ahead with it, we would have lost millions.”

My body knew before the spreadsheets did.

This is advanced somatic therapy in NYC: not just calming your nervous system, but learning to trust its wisdom in high-stakes decisions.

Beyond Basic Regulation: Somatic Intelligence for NYC Life

Within six months, David's relationship with success had transformed:

- He still worked long hours—but from choice, not compulsion

- His body became his advisor, not his enemy

- He could feel the difference between healthy activation and trauma response

- His fund performed better when he included somatic intelligence in decisions

"I'm still intense," he told me. "But now it's focused intensity, not frantic survival."

Ready to transform your relationship with success?

I offer specialized somatic therapy in NYC for high-performing professionals who are ready to go beyond coping to thriving.

My practice combines advanced Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, EMDR, and IFS with the practical realities of New York life.

Book a consultation call to explore if we're a fit: [Click here]

Limited spots available for in-person and virtual somatic therapy NYC sessions.

Warmly, Esther

Esther Goldstein LCSW, Sensorimotor, IFS, EMDR Consultant