The Peace and Happiness Adventure

How I turned burnout, self-doubt and overwhelm into a new chapter of clarity, purpose and freedom – and how you can too.

By Deb Atkins

It started, as these things often do, with a quiet question pondered inside a life that looked fine on the outside.

“Is this it?”

I was sitting in my kitchen in Kent. A stay-at-home mum with a once high-flying banking career, a beautiful child, and a long list of reasons I should have felt grateful. But something in me was slowly unravelling. I felt anxious every day. I couldn’t recognise myself anymore. Somewhere between burnout, motherhood, and the pressure to hold it all together, I’d lost my spark.

That moment became the turning point. Because when I finally stopped pretending everything was fine, I could start creating something new.

And that’s where Self-Manifest was born – a transformational method I now teach to help women do what I had to learn to do myself: rewire your mind, redesign your life, and manifest a reality that feels like yours.

This isn’t just about manifesting yachts or mansions (whilst thats great). It’s about coming back to the truth of who you are – the version of you that’s been waiting beneath the surface of ‘shoulds’, self-doubt and survival mode.

The Silent Crisis No One Talks About

We don’t talk enough about what happens when a woman loses herself.

Sometimes it comes with drama or a rock bottom. Often it looks like quietly coping. Going through the motions. Feeling flat, frustrated, or invisible – but not knowing why.

I’d spent years climbing the corporate ladder in investment banking, but underneath the external success was chronic anxiety, social fear, and a deep sense that I wasn’t free. When I left that world to raise my daughter, I thought the slower pace would bring peace. But what it actually brought was everything I’d suppressed for years.

Suddenly I wasn’t just dealing with identity loss – I was dealing with shame. Who was I without a job title? Why did I feel like I didn’t belong anywhere? Why couldn’t I just be happy?

Turns out, I wasn’t broken. I was blocked.

And the answer wasn’t fixing myself. It was unlearning what I’d been taught to believe.

The Real Work: What I Wish More Women Knew

Through years of deep mindset work, spiritual study, and subconscious reprogramming, I discovered something powerful:

You’re not stuck because you’re lazy, lost or lacking.

You’re stuck because your subconscious doesn’t feel safe with change.

Most of our lives are run on autopilot. Neuroscience tells us that up to 95% of our thoughts, behaviours and decisions come from subconscious beliefs formed before the age of seven. That means most women are trying to change their lives with the 5% of their mind that’s conscious – while the rest is still wired for fear, doubt or people-pleasing.

Add in the nervous system – which is constantly scanning for danger – and you can see why even the idea of change can make you feel frozen, overwhelmed, or exhausted before you begin.

This is why affirmations and goal-setting alone don’t work. You can’t think your way into a new life. You have to recode your identity, change your frequency.

That’s what Self-Manifest is all about.

The Dream Life Isn’t Woo – It’s Wired

The phrase “manifest your dream life” can sound fluffy. But when you break it down, it’s actually rooted in science, neurology and quantum physics.

When you combine:

Vision (mental rehearsal and identity creation), Belief (rewiring subconscious blocks), Emotional energy (embodiment and nervous system safety), and Action (aligned behaviours and habits),

…you create new neural pathways in the brain. You shift your state. You activate the reticular activating system (RAS), which filters what you notice and attract.

You become a match for new possibilities, because you’re not waiting to feel ready – you’re being the version of you who already is.

This is how we create sustainable transformation. Not through hustle. But through rewiring the inner world that’s creating your outer one.

The Self-Manifest Method™ – A 4-Part Framework

Here’s a peek into the method I now guide clients through:

1. VISUALISE – Your Dream Life Clarity

We begin by getting clear on what you actually want – beyond the noise, roles and conditioning. Most women haven’t allowed themselves to dream in years. This phase reconnects you to your inner voice, your desires, and the version of you that’s been waiting.

2. REWIRE – Your Subconscious Beliefs

Next we go under the surface. We identify the hidden beliefs that are keeping you stuck – things like “I’m not good enough” or “It’s too late for me” – and use subconscious techniques like NLP, visualisation, guided hypnosis and EFT to shift them.

3. ELEVATE – Your Self-Worth + Self-Concept

You don’t get what you want, you get what you believe you’re worthy of. Here we rebuild confidence, create identity upgrades, and regulate your nervous system so your body can hold the life you’re calling in.

4. MANIFEST – Your Dream in Real Time

Finally, we bring it into the now. You learn how to take aligned action, work with universal laws, and ground manifestation in your daily reality. This is where you become the version of you who lives what she once only imagined.

5 Tools That Changed My Life (And Might Change Yours)

If you’re ready to begin shifting your mindset now, here are five tools you can try today:

1. Ask Better Questions

Instead of asking “What’s wrong with me?”, try “What do I want more of in my life — and what would I do if I believed it was possible?”

2. Identity Visualisation

Spend 5 minutes a day imagining yourself already living your ideal life. Focus on how it feels. This primes the brain and body to shift from fear into belief.

3. Subconscious Journalling

Write out your biggest dream. Then notice what thoughts come up right after. That’s where your limiting beliefs live – and where the work begins.

4. Use Future Language

Say: “I’m becoming the kind of woman who…” instead of “I’m trying to…”. This softens resistance and starts programming new neural pathways.

5. Anchor in Safety

Before any big step, take a breath, put your hand on your heart, and say: “I am safe to expand.” Regulating your nervous system is a key part of manifesting effectively.

This Is Your Permission Slip

I know how it feels to think you’ve missed your chance. To look around and wonder where the confident, joyful, alive version of you went. To feel like you’re just surviving the day, waiting for some future version of your life to begin.

But here’s what I want you to know:

You are allowed to want more.

You are allowed to change.

You are allowed to create a life that feels like you – even if it looks nothing like the one you’ve lived so far.

There’s no age limit on dreaming. And there’s no shame in starting again.

Final Words

I created Self-Manifest to give women the tools I wish I’d had when I was lost, burnt out, and questioning everything.

You don’t have to settle.

You don’t have to stay stuck.

And you certainly don’t have to do it alone.

Because when you change your mind, you change your life.

And your dream life?

It’s not just possible – it’s already waiting for you.

Deb Atkins is a mindset and manifestation coach based in Kent. She is the founder of Self-Manifest — a transformational programme helping women rewire their minds and redesign their lives using psychology, neuroscience and spiritual science. Learn more at https://www.instagram.com/thepeaceandhappinessadventure