Turning Workplace Stress into Workplace Success
The Stress Specialist was founded in 2017 by Nicky LG, following her personal journey through stress, anxiety and depression. Born from the belief that every business deserves a thriving workforce, we now support businesses, schools, teams and individuals across the UK with proven stress management coaching and workplace wellbeing programs.
Our Founding Story
Nicky's journey to founding The Stress Specialist began during her own struggle with workplace stress, anxiety and depression. When she needed help most, she found it difficult to access the right support, making her recovery longer and harder than it needed to be. Working as a PA, project manager, operations manager and trainer, she witnessed firsthand how companies failed to understand the positive impact of supporting struggling staff or developing solid wellbeing strategies. She realised that almost every business relies on people, yet few truly understand how to look after those people to ensure success.
This personal experience became her turning point. Nicky saw an opportunity to change direction and make a real difference in the lives of people who, like her, could transform their mental wellbeing and create healthier workplaces. She invested in comprehensive retraining, studying Counselling, Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), Hypnotherapy, Coaching, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Psychological Safety, Mental Health First Aid, and Psychology, along with specialised areas including Stress, Anxiety, Autism, and Crisis Intervention.
Starting as a freelance coach and trainer, Nicky honed her skills for several years before officially launching The Stress Specialist in 2017. From those early days of working one-to-one with individuals, the business has grown to deliver training to over 6,000 employees across multiple sectors, becoming a trusted partner for organisations seeking real, measurable improvements in workplace wellbeing.
Our Mission
Our mission is to reach as many businesses and individuals as possible to educate, train and support them in reducing unnecessary levels of stress and anxiety in the workplace. We envision a future where every workplace is psychologically safe, where employees thrive rather than just survive, and where business success is built on the foundation of genuine wellbeing. Through practical, evidence-based stress management coaching and resilience training, we're creating workplaces where people can perform at their best without sacrificing their mental health.
Our values
Authenticity
We bring real-world experience to everything we do. Having walked the path of workplace stress personally, we understand the challenges our clients face. Our approach is honest, practical, and rooted in genuine empathy for those struggling with stress and anxiety.
Results-Focused
We don't believe in fluffy theory or generic solutions. Every program we deliver is designed to create measurable improvements in workplace wellbeing, staff retention, and business performance. Our clients see real results because we focus on practical tools that actually work.
Continuous Growth
We're committed to constantly expanding our knowledge and skills to better serve our clients. From our extensive qualifications to ongoing professional development, we ensure we're always equipped with the latest, most effective approaches to stress management and workplace wellbeing.
Meet the Team
Nicky LG
Founder & Lead Stress Management Coach/Trainer/Speaker
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Knowing that one conversation can change someone's entire relationship with stress - because it happened to me.
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Turning complex psychology into simple, practical tools that actually work in real life (no fluff, I promise!).
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Coaching, Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), Counselling, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Hypnotherapy, Psychological Safety, Mental Health First Aid, Psychology, Spotlight Profiling plus specialised training in Stress, Anxiety, Autism, and Crisis Intervention. But honestly, my biggest qualification is surviving my own workplace stress breakdown and coming out stronger.
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I was the classic overworked employee - PA, project manager, operations manager, trainer - always saying yes, never saying no, until my mind and body said "enough." I've sat in those uncomfortable chairs in meetings, I've cried in office toilets, and I've felt that Sunday night dread. That's why I get it.
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Helping 6,000+ people discover they're stronger than they think. Every "thank you" email, every team that stops losing good people, every person who learns to set boundaries - that's what gets me up in the morning.
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I’m a proud mum, I’m dancing or teaching (salsa), I’m reading, I’m running, I’m at the theatre, I’m listening to music or I’m sat at home with my dog Pippin drinking a perfectly made cuppa.
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“Everybody needs a Nicky in their life - she always knows how to ask the right questions to help me figure out the answer - I don’t know how she does it”
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I was an extra on Coronation Street for 2 weeks (have a guess what role I played!) - on a very big storyline - so even now there are photo’s of me online that had been on the cover page of TV magazines.
Melanie Hayward
Associate Menopause Coach and Personal Training Coach & Trainer
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I'm deeply driven by a passion to help women reclaim their strength, confidence, and vitality during one of the most misunderstood transitions in life, menopause. There's nothing more fulfilling than seeing a client go from feeling frustrated and disconnected from their body to feeling powerful, informed, and in control again. Helping women feel seen, heard, and supported is what gets me up in the morning.
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I would have to say empathy is my superpower. I come across a lot of people who simply do not have any! Because I had a particularly difficult time when I reached perimenopause and I found the coping techniques to help me through, I can totally put myself in the shoes of other women. Not only can I empathise with them, I can show them a way to have a bright, fulfilling and energetic future.
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I became a personal trainer a number of years ago but it wasn’t until I reached perimenopause that I truly understood the complexities of training during this transitional phase of life. It led me to further learning and gaining the extra knowledge and qualifications which I believe are so important to work amongst this demographic.
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Stress and menopause are deeply connected, and I’ve seen firsthand how unmanaged stress can completely derail progress and well-being. Joining forces with The Stress Specialist just made sense, we are deeply passionate about giving women the tools to thrive, not just survive.
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Because helping women is something I am deeply passionate about, it does not feel like work to me. Therefore any time I have away from my clients or running my business, is spent trying to better myself. I work hard on my physical and mental health. I love reading, learning and keeping up to date with the latest research surrounding menopause, health and well-being. I am very active and so the rest of my free time is spent either in the gym, practising yoga, mountain biking, kayaking, paddleboarding, running and long walks in the countryside.
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I am relatable because I have been where they are. I can offer empathy as well as proven techniques to help manage the symptoms of menopause. I am a good listener which enables me to be a sounding board for clients to offload as well as to know what drives them and deliver personalised programmes to achieve their fitness goals should this be what they need me for.
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I love nothing more than spending time in a muddy field listening to live music!! I have a campervan and spend a lot of time with friends attending various types of festivals in the UK throughout the summer months.
Nicola Cunningham
Associate Nutritional Coach
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I get such a kick when a client tells me that they feel fabulous after feeling rubbish for a long time, that they feel like they have the knowledge and skills to continue beyond what we do together. I mean, there’s nothing better than that is there?
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Applying the skills I developed in my previous career to ensure that nutrition is accessible, practical and enjoyable whatever your workday or life looks like.
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I worked in education for thirty years and loved it. For the last years of that, I was on the senior leadership team of an inner city comprehensive where I led safeguarding, special needs and managed my own department alongside actually teaching. I saw more of the school's cleaning team than my own family during that time! The stresses and pressures that those roles brought were huge and my goodness me, did I feel it! Exhausted, stressed beyond words, with a to-do list so long and a sense of obligation so big that I felt I had no choice but just to keep driving on through it. But then the midlife kick happened (it really wasn't a crisis!) and I decided it was time for the second career that I somehow knew I had in me. This saw me discover nutritional therapy, a path which made total sense once I found it having spent years watching kids drink gallons of pink pop at lunchtime and spend hours in detention after school for poor behaviour.
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Workplace stress? Been there, had the sleepless nights and eyebags to prove it. Working with The Stress Specialist to empower people to overcome the difficulties in ways that I didn’t have access to? No- brainer!
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I am Auntie Nic to my brilliant nephews, I might be in the gym or the garden, singing loudly whilst watching live music or possibly asleep!
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I don’t judge, I listen, I suggest things that are practical and doable, and I can usually make them laugh.
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Despite being a nutritional therapist, I really do like a chilled white wine, cake and chocolate (possibly all at the same time too!). And I do have them. Just not all the time.
Julie Cotton
Admin Ninja
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I'm deeply driven by a passion to help women reclaim their strength, confidence, and vitality during one of the most misunderstood transitions in life, menopause. There's nothing more fulfilling than seeing a client go from feeling frustrated and disconnected from their body to feeling powerful, informed, and in control again. Helping women feel seen, heard, and supported is what gets me up in the morning.
-
I would have to say empathy is my superpower. I come across a lot of people who simply do not have any! Because I had a particularly difficult time when I reached perimenopause and I found the coping techniques to help me through, I can totally put myself in the shoes of other women. Not only can I empathise with them, I can show them a way to have a bright, fulfilling and energetic future.
-
I became a personal trainer a number of years ago but it wasn’t until I reached perimenopause that I truly understood the complexities of training during this transitional phase of life. It led me to further learning and gaining the extra knowledge and qualifications which I believe are so important to work amongst this demographic.
-
Stress and menopause are deeply connected, and I’ve seen firsthand how unmanaged stress can completely derail progress and well-being. Joining forces with The Stress Specialist just made sense, we are deeply passionate about giving women the tools to thrive, not just survive.
-
Because helping women is something I am deeply passionate about, it does not feel like work to me. Therefore any time I have away from my clients or running my business, is spent trying to better myself. I work hard on my physical and mental health. I love reading, learning and keeping up to date with the latest research surrounding menopause, health and well-being. I am very active and so the rest of my free time is spent either in the gym, practising yoga, mountain biking, kayaking, paddleboarding, running and long walks in the countryside.
-
I am relatable because I have been where they are. I can offer empathy as well as proven techniques to help manage the symptoms of menopause. I am a good listener which enables me to be a sounding board for clients to offload as well as to know what drives them and deliver personalised programmes to achieve their fitness goals should this be what they need me for.
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I love nothing more than spending time in a muddy field listening to live music!! I have a campervan and spend a lot of time with friends attending various types of festivals in the UK throughout the summer months.