
E40 - Leaving academia without burnout (with Dr Ana Amaral)
From Moms, Mats and Manuscripts by Ksenia Volkova Tomaz
February 17, 2026 · 1h 12m · Episode 40
About this episode
Ana Amaral shares her journey of leaving academia despite having a successful academic background, emphasizing the role of intuition and body wisdom in career decisions.
The story of our today's guest, Ana Amaral, challenges the typical "I left academia because I burned out" narrative. With a biochemistry PhD, postdocs at Cambridge and Karolinska Institute, and an incredibly supportive boss, she had everything needed for academic success. Yet something was missing - so she decided to leave and look for it elsewhere. This episode explores how body wisdom and intuition can guide major career decisions, even when logic says to stay put. Ana shares how yoga, self...
People in this episode
Host: Ksenia Volkova Tomaz
Guest: Dr Ana Amaral
Topics covered
- career transition
- academic burnout
- intuition in decision making
- yoga
- self-discovery
Keywords
- academic burnout
- career change
- biochemistry PhD
- yoga
- intuition
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Cambridge, Karolinska Institute
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