Stress and burnout workshops
- Actionable tools and breathing techniques for high-pressure environments
- Ways to catch stress early, before it turns into burnout
- Take-home practices and simple routines people will actually keep
Set a breakpoint before burnout
Burnout and stress workshops for engineering teams
Live online training that gives your team practical ways to recognize, regulate and recover from stress, without anyone having to overshare in front of their colleagues.
Led by Dr. Melissa Baker Jones, PsyD, LMFTLicensed therapist with 20 years of experience
- UnhandledStress: running hot since last quarter
- at on_call.page() 03:14, third night this week
- at sprint.commit() scope grew, the date didn't
- at slack.unread() always on, even on holiday
- at self.review() "everyone else is coping"
- Caused by: no recovery between cycles
- breakpoint: pause, breathe, reframe, resume
- Live on your video platformZoom, Google Meet, Teams or your choice
- No private room neededNobody is asked to share personal details
- Never recordedSessions are live only
- Worldwide, flexible hoursScheduled around sprints and launches
The bug report
Stress rarely files its own ticket
Good engineers keep shipping long after they've stopped being okay. Debugging and stress have a lot in common: you slow down, isolate the root cause and test fixes patiently. Ignore the bugs and they get messier later.
Dr. Jones has spent two decades supporting professionals across numerous Fortune 100 companies. DebugStress turns that experience into online group sessions built for teams that run hot.
In a Gallup study of nearly 7,500 full-time employees, burned-out employees were 63% more likely to take a sick day and 2.6 times as likely to be actively looking for another job. Gallup, 2018
What it tends to look like first
- The strongest people on the team go quiet in retros
- Sarcasm about the roadmap starts to sound like resignation
- On-call weeks feel like something to survive, then recover from
- Reviews get slower, or sharper, and small mistakes creep in
- A long weekend no longer seems to help
Sessions
Two ways to work with us
Every session is live and online, and shaped around how much pressure your team is under right now.
Guided relaxation sessions
- Guided imagery to ease tension and mental fatigue
- Visualization and breathwork for deep relaxation
- A way to reset and refocus during high-stress cycles
What a session covers
Recognize. Regulate. Recover.
Participants learn research-backed tools they can use at work and in the rest of their lives. These aren't theoretical ideas. They're skills people practice during the session and can use the same day.
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01 recognize()
Spot it early
How stress shows up for you in your body, your attention, your temper and your self-talk, so you can catch it before it runs the day.
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02 regulate()
Bring it down
Breathwork and grounding you can use between meetings, before a hard conversation or in the middle of an incident.
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03 recover()
Actually reset
Cognitive reframing and take-home routines for the hours after the pressure passes, which is when recovery really happens.
Why trust us
What a workshop can't fix, and why we'll tell you
If your on-call rotation pages people three nights a week, no breathing exercise will repair it. Engineers know that, and they can spot wellness theater from a long way off.
So here's our honest position. Skills help people cope and recover. Your workload, staffing and management decisions have to hold up their end too. If we think a workshop is the wrong tool for your situation, we'll say so.
- Grounded in established methodsCognitive-behavioral techniques, mindfulness and relaxation skills, which have been widely studied in workplace settings.
- Practical on day oneEach session leaves your team with strategies they can apply right away.
- Better conversationsPeople learn to recognize emotional patterns and communicate under pressure with more clarity.
- Built around your calendarScheduled around sprint cycles, product launches, stand-ups and time zones.
Meet the founder
Dr. Melissa Baker Jones
PsyD, LMFT · Founder and lead facilitator
Dr. Jones is a licensed therapist with 20 years of experience helping high-performing professionals navigate stress, burnout and career pressure, with a background in clinical psychology and the tech industry. Dr. Jones brings empathy, evidence and insight to every session.
- MA and PsyD, Alliant International University
- Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, California BBS License 51801
- In practice since 2006, with a focus on adults coping with work stress
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Is this therapy?
No. Sessions are group stress-management training. They don't involve diagnosis or treatment, and they don't create a therapist-client relationship. Anyone who wants individual support should talk with a licensed clinician or use their company's mental health benefit.
Do team members have to share personal experiences?
No. Nobody is asked to talk about detailed personal experiences. People learn and practice skills together, and can take part as much or as little as they like.
Do team members need a private setting?
No. Sessions can be done during business hours from an office. A space free of disruption is preferred but not required.
Are the sessions recorded?
No. Sessions are not recorded.
How is pricing determined?
Pricing is customized based on your company's needs, team size and session frequency. Contact us for a quote.
Who is this for?
Teams in high-performance environments, especially tech companies scaling rapidly under pressure. Engineering leaders and People, HR or learning and development teams can book a session for their group.
What's the format?
Interactive video calls via Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams or your platform of choice.
What do participants need?
A device with internet access and a microphone. A webcam is highly encouraged for added focus and engagement.
What locations do you support?
We work worldwide with flexible hours. Sessions are in English, and a customer may provide a translator.
How is this different from an EAP or mental health benefit?
A benefit such as an employee assistance program supports individuals privately. A DebugStress session teaches a group shared skills. They work well side by side, and a session doesn't replace individual care.
Will a workshop fix burnout on my team?
Not by itself. Skills help people cope and recover, but burnout comes from chronic workplace stress, so workload, staffing and management matter too. Here's what the research says.
Contact
Tell us what your team is dealing with
Pricing depends on your company's needs, team size and how often you'd like to meet. Send a few details and we'll be in touch with a quote. Prefer to talk first? Call or email.
(949) 203-5655
hello@debugstress.com
Worldwide, flexible hours, in English. Please don't include health details about yourself or colleagues in this form.