I still remember the night my phone lit up with a message from Jordan. “I think I need help,” it read. A tech CEO and longtime friend, Jordan had always been the picture of success—relentlessly focused, constantly innovating, never slowing down. But that evening, sitting in my Echo Park apartment, I read his confession: he hadn’t slept more than three hours a night in weeks and couldn’t remember his last real meal.
The irony wasn’t lost on me. Just last month, I’d visited The Restoration Point—a secluded wellness facility nestled in the Malibu hills where executives pay upwards of $130,000 weekly to recover from burnout. I was there to interview its founder, Dr. Elisa Montrose, who built the center after her own spectacular burnout crashed a promising career in neurosurgery. “I ignored every warning sign,” she told me, gently swirling her herbal tea. “My hands started shaking during procedures. I’d forget conversations minutes after having them.”
Burnout among top executives has reached unprecedented levels in 2025. A recent McKinsey study found 73% of C-suite leaders report experiencing severe burnout symptoms, up from 61% just two years ago. The pandemic’s lingering effects, economic uncertainty, and always-on digital culture have created what Dr. Montrose calls “the perfect storm of executive mental health challenges.”
What makes executive burnout particularly dangerous is how it hides behind success. “These are people trained to push through discomfort,” explained Dr. Renee Faulkner, chief psychiatrist at The Restoration Point. “They’ve built careers on endurance and resilience. Admitting they’re struggling feels like failure.”
The treatment approaches at these executive-focused centers differ dramatically from traditional therapy. At The Restoration Point, executives surrender their devices upon arrival. The first three days involve what staff call “digital detox and system reset”—essentially allowing the brain to decompress without constant stimulation.
Each guest—they never use the word “patient”—follows a carefully customized program. Some need intensive sleep therapy; others require nutritional overhauls. Many arrive seriously dehydrated, their bodies struggling after years of stress hormones flooding their systems.
Physical activity forms a core component, but not the high-intensity workouts many executives favor. “That just continues the stress cycle,” Dr. Montrose explained, leading me through gardens where guests practice tai chi and mindful walking. “We’re teaching sustainable movement that calms rather than stimulates the nervous system.”
The most transformative aspect, according to former guests I spoke with, involves cognitive reframing. “I had to unlearn equating my worth with productivity,” shared Alicia Chen, former CFO at a major financial institution. “That’s harder than it sounds when you’ve built your identity around achievement.”
What surprised me most during my visit was learning how many executives return for “maintenance stays” after their initial treatment. “Recovery isn’t a one-time event,” Dr. Montrose emphasized. “It’s an ongoing practice, especially when you return to environments designed to extract maximum performance.”
Not everyone has $130,000 for weekly treatment, of course. When I mentioned this to Dr. Montrose, she nodded thoughtfully. “We’re developing scaled programs for different organizational levels,” she said. Her team recently launched virtual support groups and is partnering with insurance providers to make certain treatments more accessible.
For those without elite access, Dr. Faulkner recommends starting with boundary-setting practices. “Begin your recovery by reclaiming just 30 minutes daily for restorative activity,” she advises. “And make sleep non-negotiable—it’s when your brain processes stress.”
After my visit, I sent Jordan some resources and checked in regularly. He didn’t end up at The Restoration Point, but he did take a month-long sabbatical and worked with a therapist specializing in executive stress. “I realized I was running from something, not toward anything meaningful,” he told me over coffee last week.
As our workplaces continue evolving, perhaps the true measure of success will shift too. Maybe the executives we’ll admire most won’t be those who never rest, but those wise enough to recognize when they need to pause and reconnect with what matters most.
