TL;DR: That constant coffee, water bottle, or energy drink by your desk isn't just a hydration habit. It's often a stress signal. Research shows frequent beverage consumption correlates with burnout, low workplace trust, and can trigger serious GERD issues. Herman, a 45-year-old CIO, proved you can reverse all of it with the right approach. Here's his story and what you can do.
Sipping on a drink all day while working might not be a good idea.
Herman kept a Yeti tumbler on his desk at all times. Coffee in the morning. Water all afternoon. Back to coffee around 3 PM for the energy crash.
For ten years as CIO at a PE-backed firm, he told himself it was just staying hydrated. Smart. Professional. Normal.
Then came the diagnosis: GERD. Obesity. Hypertension. Sleep apnea.
His doctor looked at him and said what Herman already knew but wouldn't admit. "Your body's screaming at you to stop."
What your beverage habit is actually telling you
Let me break this down. When I started working with Herman through my Never Burnout Again® course, we uncovered something surprising. His constant sipping wasn't about thirst.
It was self-soothing.
Research shows that employees dealing with chronic workplace stress and low organizational trust unconsciously reach for beverages to regulate their emotions (Christiansen et al., 2019; Li et al., 2024). Think about it. Every time you feel anxious in a meeting, what do you do? You take a sip. Email from your boss that makes your chest tight? Another sip.
It's an oral self-soothing behavior we learn as kids. When workplace trust breaks down or you feel like your job security is shaky, your nervous system kicks into high gear. And you reach for that drink.
Herman's PE firm was brutal. Constant reorgs. Zero psychological safety. Every day felt like walking on eggshells. His body adapted by creating this micro-ritual. Sip. Breathe. Keep going.
But here's what nobody tells you: this pattern destroys your stomach.
The GERD trap nobody warns you about
Every time Herman took a sip between meals, his stomach did something harmful. It secreted more acid. The acid pocket reformed. His lower esophageal sphincter relaxed, letting stomach contents splash back up into his esophagus (Calabrese et al., 2019).
Over and over. All day long.
Most people think drinking frequently dilutes stomach acid. Wrong. Each beverage consumption episode triggers a fresh cycle of acid secretion. Coffee, tea, soda? They're the worst offenders, increasing GERD symptom risk by 26-34% with high intake (Kim et al., 2020).
Herman's constant sipping created this vicious cycle. Stress drove him to drink. Drinking triggered acid reflux. Acid reflux caused more stress. His sleep apnea got worse. Weight went up. Blood pressure climbed.
All from a habit that seemed harmless.
Herman's turnaround
Working with Herman over six months changed everything. But first, we had to fix the trust issue.
Here are two methods that worked:
Method 1: The Weekly Transparency Meeting
Herman started scheduling 30-minute one-on-ones with his CEO. Not to report status. Not to get grilled. To speak honestly about workload, concerns, and resource needs. The key? He came prepared with data, not complaints. "Our infrastructure team is handling 40% more tickets with the same headcount. Here's the trend line. Here's what breaks if we don't address it."
Transparent communication rebuilds trust faster than anything (Degnan, 2025). When Herman stopped hiding his stress and started documenting it objectively, his CEO actually listened. Trust takes repeated honest exchanges over time. But it starts with one conversation.
Method 2: The Boundary Documentation System
Herman created a shared document outlining his work boundaries. Clear start and end times. No Slack after 7 PM unless it's a true emergency (defined specifically). Weekend response expectations.
He didn't ask permission. He stated it. Then invited feedback.
This did something powerful. It signaled to his organization that he valued his own well-being enough to protect it. And it forced the conversation about whether his role was sustainable (it wasn't, and they adjusted).
What Herman did instead of sipping all day
I told Herman to try something simple. Every two hours, put the drink down. Stand up. Walk outside for ten minutes.
Not for a call. Not checking email on his phone. Just walking.
Research confirms that microbreaks under ten minutes significantly boost vigor and reduce fatigue (Albulescu et al., 2022). But here's the real benefit: walking breaks the oral self-soothing cycle without triggering acid reflux.
Herman resisted at first. "I don't have time for that."
I said, "You're spending 30 minutes a day refilling drinks and sipping. You have the time. You're just using it wrong."
He started with twice daily. Morning. Afternoon. Within three weeks, his GERD symptoms dropped by half. Within three months, he was off his proton pump inhibitors. Within six months, his blood pressure normalized.
The walking replaced the sipping as his stress regulation tool. And it actually worked.
The Burnout Connection
Constant beverage consumption is both a symptom and an accelerant of burnout. When you lose trust in your employer, your nervous system stays activated in threat mode. You self-soothe through whatever's available. For Herman and millions of others, that's drinks.
But this coping mechanism damages your body and masks the real problem. You're not addressing the broken workplace relationship. You're medicating it with caffeine and creating digestive problems that compound your stress.
Burnout measures the quality of your relationship with your environment and your trust in your future (Degnan, 2025). When Herman stopped self-soothing and started addressing the actual trust breakdown at work, everything shifted. His body calmed down. His GERD reversed. His sleep improved.
The beverage habit was just a messenger. He finally listened.
Your First Move
Pick one. Start today.
If you're constantly drinking throughout your workday, try this experiment. For one week, limit beverages to one hour AFTER meal times only. Replace midday sipping with two 10-minute outdoor walks. Track how your body feels. Track your stress levels. Track your digestion.
If you're dealing with low workplace trust, schedule one transparency conversation with your manager this week. Come prepared with data. Speak honestly. Document boundaries.
And if you need deeper help reversing burnout like Herman did, book time with me at https://meet.drdegnan.com. Herman's story is one of my all-time favorites because it proves a lot is reversible when you address the root cause instead of managing symptoms.
Your beverage habit is trying to tell you something. Listen.
Until next week!
— Oliver
