Between Survival and Sensation

In her new book, longevity expert and hotel manager Nike Schröder explores how emptiness can turn into fulfillment again.

Physical strength can be measured with ease — in kilograms, seconds, or repetitions. Inner strength, however, resists all metrics. Can it truly be found in achievement or the simple act of enduring? For mental health coach Nike Schröder, the answer is no. To her, true strength is something quieter, more profound. A force that lives far beyond the mere mechanics of functioning.

The multifaceted expert in longevity and mental health, journalist, and hotel manager Nike Schröder — whose path has also been shaped by co-founding Palazzo Fiuggi and encounters with Oprah Winfrey — distills these experiences in her new book. (The english version will soon be available)

Your book is titled The Art of Staying Strong When Everything Feels Too Much. But doesn’t true strength perhaps begin the moment we stop feeling the need to be strong all the time?

Absolutely. That is exactly where true strength begins. For far too long, we have misunderstood strength as endurance, performance, perfection. Yet real strength is not revealed in how long someone can suffer without breaking — but in the courage to become honest with oneself.

The most dangerous sentence of our time is: I’m fine, I can handle it. So many people are merely functioning, emotionally numb. In my book, I write: Sometimes letting go requires more courage than fighting on. The strongest people are often those who have stopped waging war against themselves.

Which expectations do you believe weigh most heavily on the women you explicitly address in your book?

Women today are expected to be everything at once: strong yet soft, successful but never too dominant. Beautiful, yet effortlessly natural. Caring, resilient and never exhausted. Many carry not only their own lives, but also the emotional weight of others.

The issue is not weakness, but the constant self-overextension carried out in the name of love, achievement, and recognition. That is why self-care is not a luxury, but an act of inner liberation.

What role does Palazzo Fiuggi play in the process of self-discovery?

Palazzo Fiuggi is far more than a place of retreat — it is a space for encountering oneself.

There, something rare begins: real silence. In a world saturated with distraction, that very silence is what many struggle to tolerate. Yet healing does not start in the external world, but in the moment we meet ourselves again — without roles, without masks, without noise.

Many people come to realize that it is not their life that is the problem, but their disconnection from themselves — the distance from their own inner truth.

Many famous people have already been guests here — including Oprah Winfrey. Women associate her with self-empowerment and inner transformation. What can we learn from her?

Oprah Winfrey has understood that healing and success are not mutually exclusive. She has never hidden her vulnerability and that is precisely what makes her so powerful.

In a world full of performance and image-building, her authenticity became her strength. She speaks openly about pain, trauma, and self-doubt. Not striving to be perfect, but to be truthful — that is what makes her so credible to many people.

When did you first feel: I can’t go on like this anymore?

It wasn’t a dramatic moment, but a quiet one. That is exactly what makes burnout so dangerous. You don’t break all at once — you drift away from yourself bit by bit. Outwardly, I kept functioning: meetings, responsibility, expectations — but inwardly I was completely empty. And I knew: if I continue like this, I won’t lose my success, I will lose myself. Many people wait for the big collapse. But the real warning is often emotional numbness.

What do you do differently today compared to before when stress suddenly becomes overwhelming?

Earlier, I used to fight stress. Today, I listen to it. Because stress is often the body’s message that something is no longer right. I set boundaries earlier and consciously create spaces where I am not available. Above all, I no longer define my worth through productivity. And that changes everything.

What is the key sentence that captures the essence of your book?

You don’t have to break in order to begin again. Or more simply: the greatest strength arises the moment you stop fighting yourself. Because in the end, it’s not about how much we can endure, but whether we lose ourselves — or find ourselves again.

About Nike Schröder:

Nike Schröder is a TV editor, hotel manager, and author, as well as a member of the management team at Forte Village and co-founder of Palazzo Fiuggi. She is an INSEAD-certified coach, a trained trauma coach according to Verena König, and is currently studying psychology at the Fern-Universität in Hagen.

About the book:

Fotos: Sabina Radke, Palazzo Fiuggi