The Neurobiology of Intuition: How One Woman Healed Her Nervous System and Rewired Her Life

In this deeply moving installment of The FoundHer Files, Sonya Lee shares her story of how she healed her nervous system and rewired her life. Sonya is a spiritual teacher, intuitive leadership advisor, and founder guiding high-performing women from burnout to embodied purpose. From a childhood spent in a Buddhist monastery to leading Fortune 100 brands, and ultimately rebuilding after personal and professional collapse, Sonya’s journey is a testament to the power of nervous system healing, spiritual reconnection, and soulful leadership. She shares what it means to truly lead from within—and why reclaiming your body’s wisdom may be the most powerful business strategy of all.

The FoundHer Files is our candid interview series spotlighting fearless female entrepreneurs who are rewriting the rules of business, leadership, and legacy. Through real stories of resilience, purpose, and bold reinvention, each installment dives into the journeys of women who dared to build their own lanes—and bring others along with them. These are the unfiltered blueprints behind the breakthroughs.

For most of my adult life, I was the picture of success on paper—an executive working with major brands like Warner Brothers, a founder, a Fortune 100 consultant, and a Chief Experience Officer. I knew how to lead, scale, and deliver results. But beneath that polished exterior, my nervous system was shot. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was functioning in chronic survival mode.

I grew up in a Buddhist monastery as a teenager, raised by monks and nuns after my mother made a spiritual choice that would forever change our family. Though her decision came from a deep calling to spiritual truth, the separation from my parents – and from my beloved grandparents – was absolutely heart-wrenching. Spirituality was part of my DNA. Though I was raised in Buddhist traditions, my spiritual belief system today consists of ‘all of the above’ – I honor the wisdom found in many great religions and belief systems. I may use Christian language like Jesus, God, Mother Mary, and Archangels, but this is for practical communication rather than religious exclusivity.

When I left the monastery, I entered the corporate world determined to succeed in a system that didn’t leave space for softness, for intuition, or for healing. I worked hard, climbed fast, and stayed disconnected from my body.

Everything changed when my tech startup company collapsed.

That loss triggered a cascade: I lost a baby, then my partner. Within a few months, everything I had built came crashing down. I was deeply depressed, anxious, and spiritually unmoored. And that’s when I made a deal with God: “Clearly, you set this up. What do you want me to do?”

The answer came quietly but clearly: Be with Me every day.

So I did.

What followed was a years-long journey of healing my nervous system and rebuilding my life—not just on the outside, but from the inside out.

Understanding Nervous System Overload

It wasn’t until I hit rock bottom that I realized how dysregulated I had been for years. I had adapted to high stress. I could perform under pressure. But my body was constantly bracing—clenched jaw, shallow breath, interrupted sleep. My nervous system was never really at rest. I had been living in fight-or-flight, trying to prove my worth through achievement.

As I studied trauma, polyvagal theory, energetics, and somatics, I began to see a clear link between intuition and regulation. When our nervous systems are stuck in survival mode, we can’t access true clarity. We override our inner knowing with urgency, people-pleasing, and performance. But when we begin to regulate—through breathwork, rest, hydration, deep presence—we start to hear ourselves again. We rebuild trust.

That’s when the intuitive channel opens.

Returning to the Body, Reclaiming the Truth

Healing wasn’t about chasing peak experiences. It was about slowing down enough to let my body lead. I began a daily practice of asking my nervous system what it needed—not what my ego demanded.

Sometimes that meant taking a nap instead of checking another item off a to-do list. Sometimes it meant crying in the shower, letting grief move through. Sometimes it meant eating when I wasn’t hungry, but I knew my body was depleted.

I stopped trying to force my life into a five-year plan and started co-creating with Spirit. The more I regulated, the more I could receive. Messages came through in dreams. My ancestors began visiting. One morning in 2021, I woke to find seventeen ancestors in my room—telling me it was time to teach, to lead, and to carry forward the wisdom of our lineage.

But first, I had to take care of myself.

What It Means to Lead Now

I still work with leaders, but I do it differently now. I support founders, visionaries, and creatives who want to lead from clarity—not chaos. My work blends neuroscience, somatics, intuitive development, mindfulness, and energetic healing. It’s not about bypassing the real-world strategy—it’s about pairing it with inner safety and truth.

More importantly, it’s about helping people reconnect with their true purpose. When we’re operating from a dysregulated nervous system, we often pursue goals that aren’t truly ours. We chase external validation instead of listening to the deeper calling within. I’ve found that purpose isn’t something we manufacture or achieve—it’s something we uncover when we’re regulated enough to hear our inner wisdom.

When our nervous systems are grounded, our decision-making sharpens. Our boundaries strengthen. Our productivity increases. Our relationships become more authentic. We lead with presence instead of performance. And we stop leaking energy in a million directions instead of trying to prove we’re good enough.

Purpose naturally emerges when we’re no longer operating from survival mode. It’s the quiet knowing that guides us toward work that feels both meaningful and energizing. It’s the alignment between who we truly are and what we offer to the world. This kind of purpose-driven leadership creates sustainable success because it’s rooted in authenticity rather than exhaustion.

Advice for the Woman on the Edge

If you’re reading this and you feel burned out, disconnected, or stuck in a loop of success that doesn’t feel good—know that it’s not a failure. It’s a sign.

A dysregulated nervous system doesn’t need punishment. It needs compassion.

Start with the basics: sleep, hydration, breathing, and sunlight. Ask your body what it needs. Let your intuition be something you rebuild, not something you wait to be gifted with. Trust that the version of you who is whole, regulated, and radiant already exists—you’re just returning to her.

Sonya Lee is a spiritual teacher, intuitive leadership advisor, and the author of “Channels of Light”. She works with high-performing women ready to lead from their soul instead of their stress response. Learn more at https://www.sonyalee.io or https://www.instagram.com/sonyaleeofficial