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Miranda Priestly Energy Is Back: Why “Maxxing” Culture Is Pushing UK Workers Into Burnout

Nurosym

Nurosym

Nurosym Content Team
News & Updates

Developed by a multidisciplinary content team, this material translates validated research on bioelectronic and neuromodulation approaches into clear and clinically grounded information.

The return of The Devil Wears Prada, alongside the rise of “maxxing” trends, may be reigniting an obsession with relentless productivity and high-performance work culture across the UK.

With workplace stress already at record highs and digital culture encouraging constant self-optimisation, our experts warn that many people are pushing their nervous systems far beyond what they were designed to sustain.

In this blog, we explore what our findings reveal about modern hustle culture, why experts believe chronic stress is becoming normalised, and what this means for long-term mental and nervous system health.

Why “Miranda Priestly energy” is making a comeback

The release of The Devil Wears Prada 2 has reignited public fascination with the film’s intense workplace culture.

This month alone, UK searches for The Devil Wears Prada have increased by almost 500%, with the character of Miranda Priestly once again becoming symbolic of a glamourised high-performance lifestyle built around perfectionism, long hours, and constant availability.

At the same time, online “maxxing” trends are rapidly growing across social media.

Searches for “maxxing” have risen from 1,900 monthly searches a year ago to 9,900 in March 2026 alone in the lead-up to the film’s release. 

Across platforms like TikTok and Instagram, success is increasingly framed around total optimisation with phrases such as “careermaxx,” “moneymaxx,” “productivitymaxx,” and “looksmaxx.”

Together, these trends encourage people to continuously improve every area of their lives, often treating rest and recovery as barriers to success rather than necessities.

The Impact modern work culture is having on stress levels

Against this backdrop, our research highlights the growing pressure many UK workers are already experiencing:

  • Nine in ten UK adults (91%) experienced high or extreme stress levels in the past year

  • One in five workers needed time off due to stress-related poor mental health

  • Stress, anxiety, and depression are now responsible for more than 22.1 million lost working days annually across Britain

  • Poor mental health is estimated to cost UK employers up to £45 billion every year

Stress now accounts for almost half of all self-reported work-related ill health in Britain.

What once felt exaggerated in the fictional world of Runway magazine is now beginning to reflect the reality of modern work culture, where constant responsiveness, overachievement, and pressure to remain productive have become increasingly normalised.

The impact chronic stress has on the nervous system

Experts warn that behind the pressure to constantly optimise is a growing nervous system burden that many people fail to recognise.

Dr Elisabetta Burchi, Clinical Psychiatrist and Head of Research at Nurosym, explains:

“We are witnessing the normalisation of a chronic stress state.”

She continues:

“There is a growing disconnect between modern work expectations and what the human body can biologically sustain. Many individuals are functioning under persistent physiological activation while perceiving it as normal productivity.”

While the body can adapt well to short-term stress, prolonged exposure without adequate recovery can gradually affect:

  • cognitive flexibility

  • emotional regulation

  • sleep quality

  • concentration

  • attentional capacity

  • overall resilience

In this state, cortisol and adrenaline remain elevated for extended periods, making true rest and recovery significantly harder.

Over time, this may contribute to:

  • anxiety

  • emotional exhaustion

  • cognitive fatigue

  • poor sleep

  • reduced concentration

  • prolonged “fight or flight” activation

Why high-functioning burnout often goes unnoticed

One of the central themes of The Devil Wears Prada is suppressing personal well-being in order to appear capable, composed, and successful. Behind the scenes, many UK workers are doing exactly the same.

According to the CIPD, a quarter of UK workers (25%) say their jobs negatively affect their mental health, while 24% say work negatively impacts their physical health.

Dr Burchi explains:

“There is often a mismatch between external appearance and internal physiological state.”

Like Andy Sachs trying to keep pace with impossible expectations, many people continue pushing through exhaustion in order to maintain the appearance of being productive and high-functioning.

Dr Burchi adds:

“People may appear highly functional and productive while their autonomic nervous system is operating under sustained strain. Over time, this can reduce adaptability and increase vulnerability to anxiety, burnout and emotional dysregulation.”

How can nervous system regulation support recovery?

As awareness around burnout and stress continues to grow, attention is increasingly turning towards interventions that support recovery instead of simply encouraging people to “push through.”

One area attracting growing interest is vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), which supports the vagus nerve, a key regulator involved in stress response, mood, inflammation, heart rate variability, and recovery.

Dr Burchi explains:

“When vagal tone is low, the body struggles to efficiently transition out of stress states.”

She continues:

“Supporting vagal activity may help improve emotional regulation, stress resilience, sleep quality and cognitive recovery.”

Recent advances in wearable neurotechnology have made non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation increasingly accessible for at-home use. Nurosym, an auricular vagus nerve stimulation device backed by more than 60 clinical studies, has demonstrated:

  • up to 35% reduction in anxiety

  • 48% reduction in fatigue

  • 31% improvement in sleep quality

  • 32% increase in memory recall

Used consistently, interventions focused on nervous system regulation may help support recovery, resilience, and more sustainable long-term performance.

A changing conversation around productivity and wellbeing

Our findings highlight a growing shift in how productivity and success are being understood.

While hustle culture and “maxxing” trends continue to glamorise overworking and constant optimisation, experts warn that the human nervous system was never designed for continuous stimulation and pressure without recovery.

For many people, high-functioning stress has become so normalised that burnout often goes unnoticed until symptoms become difficult to manage.

As awareness around nervous system health continues to grow, the future of sustainable productivity may depend less on pushing harder and more on supporting the body’s ability to recover, adapt, and regulate stress effectively.

Wherever possible, prioritising recovery, sleep quality, and nervous system regulation may become increasingly important for maintaining long-term mental wellbeing and resilience.

Methodology

Data sourced from:

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