Why EAP and Coaching Aren't Enough for Finance Sector Burnout
Content warning: this post discusses burnout, workplace stress, and briefly references substance use. If any of this feels overwhelming, please take care while reading.
About the author
Verinder Sharma is a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner and the founder of Soul Somatic Therapy, working online with clients across the UK and internationally, in English and Spanish. Before training as a therapist, Verinder worked in financial regulation at the Financial Conduct Authority and IOSCO, across supervision, market abuse, policy, and ESG, bringing direct, lived experience of the pressures covered in this article.
Verinder is a Director of SEAUK (the Somatic Experiencing® Association UK), and holds accreditations with CThA and IACTM.
Why EAP and Coaching Aren't Enough for Finance Sector Burnout
If you've read Part 1 of this series, you'll recognise the pressure and culture that make burnout in finance so common, and so rarely spoken about. This post is for those of you who want to keep building your career in this industry, but know that something needs to genuinely change in how you're managing the toll it's taking.
Many people reach for the support that's already in front of them first, an Employee Assistance Programme, or a coach. Both can help. But it's worth understanding where each one tends to stop short, so you can make a more informed choice about what you actually need.
Why EAP support often isn't enough
Sessions are usually capped, often six to eight, and can end just as you're starting to open up
The techniques offered tend to focus on managing symptoms in the moment, rather than resolving what's underneath them
EAP support is frequently delivered through CBT, which works with thoughts and behaviour, but doesn't directly address what's held in the body, which may believe the stress is still happening
It's worth asking yourself honestly: is this service designed to represent your interests, or your employer's?
Coaching - the benefits, and the limits, without the body
Coaching can be genuinely useful, it's goal-oriented, forward-moving, and good at helping you think clearly about strategy, priorities, and next steps. For many of the practical pressures of a finance career, that's real value.
What coaching isn't built to do is work with your nervous system directly. If your body is still bracing, still scanning for risk, still holding tension from the last difficult conversation, no amount of goal-setting will fully switch that off. The strategy can be sound, and the underlying stress response can still be running underneath it.
What Somatic Experiencing® can offer instead
Somatic Experiencing® works directly with the nervous system, rather than only with your thinking. Sessions gently explore what's happening in the body, tension, bracing, the physical residue of sustained pressure, and help it process and settle, at a pace that stays manageable throughout.
This isn't about reliving difficult experiences in detail. It's about helping your body come out of a prolonged state of alert, so the calm you feel isn't dependent on constantly managing yourself through it.
Between sessions, you'll have direct access and practical exercises to work with, built for the reality of a demanding week, not a rigid once-a-week model.
My background in this industry
I worked in financial regulation at the Financial Conduct Authority in Canary Wharf, London, and later at IOSCO in Madrid, across supervision, market abuse, policy, and ESG. That work brought me into contact with global authorities including the ECB, SEC, and other regulators, giving me insight into the financial industry, and its working culture, across different countries and regulatory systems.
That period of my career changed direction. I later trained as a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner, and I now work with people building their careers in finance, bringing both a genuine understanding of the industry and a body-based approach to recovering from its toll.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between EAP and Somatic Experiencing®?
EAP support is typically short-term and employer-provided, focused on immediate symptom management. Somatic Experiencing® is a longer-term, body-based approach aimed at resolving the underlying stress response, not just managing it in the moment.
Is coaching enough to recover from burnout?
Coaching can help with strategy and direction, but it isn't designed to work with the nervous system directly. Many people benefit from combining coaching with a body-based therapeutic approach.
Will my employer know if I access private therapy?
No, sessions arranged privately and independently of an employer's EAP are confidential between you and your practitioner.
How does the new FCA conduct rule on bullying and harassment affect me?
From 1 September 2026, FCA rules extend existing bank conduct requirements on bullying, harassment, and violence to around 37,000 more regulated firms, formally linking this behaviour to fitness-and-propriety assessments. It's part of why confidential support that sits outside your employer's own processes matters, particularly if you're navigating a live workplace issue. (This is general information, not legal advice, for anything specific to your situation, it's worth speaking to an employment specialist alongside any therapeutic support.)
How many sessions of Somatic Experiencing® does it usually take?
This varies by person and what you're working with. Unlike EAP, there's no fixed session cap, the pace is set collaboratively, based on what you need.
For the wider context on pressure and culture in the finance industry, see Blog 1 - Burnout in Finance: The Hidden Culture Behind an Always-On Industry. For those questioning whether to stay in finance at all, see Blog 3 - Coming soon
Verinder Sharma - Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner · Director, SEA UK · CThA · IACTM · Former FCA & IOSCO
Read more about Verinder's approach or book a free consultation.