While I can’t show examples of this work, I regularly write messaging for the CEO, Board Chair and executive team for a mental health organisation.

This includes speeches, email communications and newsletters to staff, external statements, video scripts, awards applications, as well as media lines.

Volunteer firefighter Michael Vickers was busy fighting the Black Summer bushfires in Nelligan NSW while his own burned. The 20-year-old father had been working non-stop to protect his community. This article helped Michael and his family raise over $2000.

I’ve always experienced mental health challenges. And when life throws you a curve ball–like, say, the coronavirus–things can get even harder. Thankfully, my experience of living with bipolar disorder has taught me a thing or two about ways to cope. I shared these tips for Reach Out to support other young people with their mental health.

No single day is the same for senior mental health clinician Christian Bimbola Ogbah.

As part of his role in Forensicare’s Mental Health Advice and Response Service(MHARS) team at Ringwood Magistrates’ Court, Christian helps some of society’s most vulnerable people—that is, people who are engaged with the justice system and live with a mental illness.

As a mental health advocate,  I think sharing our stories is one of the most powerful things we can do to reduce stigma.

It is NOT shameful to live with a mental illness. We are NOT broken. We are NOT a liability. Even after experiencing the darkest depths of our mind, we can recover. There is ALWAYS hope. That’s why I shared my story with News.com.au.

In 2016, I worked as Cancer Council’s Dance for Cancer Marketing Coordinator for the Eurobodalla, where I sourced “stars” and dancers, prizes, provided administrative support, as well as on-the-ground media support. As part of this project, I wrote many biographies for participants, including Kasia Curral, who danced for her mum who’d passed away from cancer. We raised over $20,000 for cancer support services on the south coast.

In 2014 and 2015, I worked as a media coordinator for the Cancer Council’s Eurobodalla Relay for Life.

This involved writing media releases, liaising with stakeholders and local media, as well as creating and sharing stories in written and multimedia format. I also managed our social media, and provided on-the-ground coverage of the day: including photography.

Motherhood is difficult for anyone, but it’s even trickier for single mum Pagen Jade Watters. PJ’s autism can impact her quite severely on a daily basis, and now, her young daughter is one of her mum’s biggest supporters.

Mental health advocacy is incredibly important to me: because I know what it’s like to not feel okay, and I know what it’s like to feel alone. I wrote this article during a manic episode to alleviate the stigma that surrounds bipolar, and raise awareness for what we go through. #ItGetsBetter

After decades of living with an excruciating invisible illness, makeup artist Andrea Baines was determined to raise awareness for endometriosis. It’s an extremely painful condition no one can see–which makes it even more important to be understood and recognised.

Reconnecting with your loved ones is never easy. But mum Leanne* knew it was exactly what she had to do.

It had been years since she’d spoken to her daughter Sarah*, but in 2013, when health issues threatened her life, Leanne knew it was time to mend their bond.

It took years for Leanne to come to terms with what had happened–the incident that caused Sarah to be sent to the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, and later, Thomas Embling Hospital for secure treatment. But she knew she just had to keep loving her daughter. Even when it was hard.

A vegan wedding? No way. That’s how some of Georgie Purcell’s family and friends responded when she said she wanted an all-vegan wedding. But a non-vegan wedding wasn’t an option for the couple, who are passionate about saving animals. And in the end? Guests LOVED it.

At 22, I had a diagnostic surgery for suspected endometriosis. This is an insight into the agonising pain women with endometriosis experience on a daily basis. One in ten women experience endometriosis, and while not everyone’s pain and symptoms are the same or as extreme, it’s still a horrible condition that has the power to quite literally ruin lives. And there’s no cure.

Gaming has always been there for me. Whenever life has been too stressful, too overwhelming, or too devastating, games have always been a safe haven. A beautiful, sweet escape, where you can do anything and be anything. A place where you can feel a therapeutic sense of progression, which is something we don’t always get to feel in our everyday lives.

Alongside my experience as a journalist is my work in corporate communications. I’ve spent years working in government communications, writing blog posts, internal and external newsletters, email marketing, video scripts, award applications, annual reports, models of care, welcome booklets, and a number of other important documents. I’ve also been involved in project management, including writing proposals and managing stakeholders for projects up to $15,000, as well as the creation of SEO, digital content and social media strategy.

Peer worker Glenn Broome helps prisoners find hope in Forensicare’s forensic mental health service at the Ravenhall Correctional Centre–and it can be as simple as a cup of coffee, and a chat with someone who cares. 

After half a lifetime of battling his own mental health demons, Glenn Broome was determined to help others find hope.

It doesn’t surprise me that the Australian government hasn’t made rapid antigen tests free.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I think they absolutely should be free, like they are in many other countries around the globe. For accessibility and for public health, it just makes sense.

But despite how beneficial free tests would be, I don’t have high hopes, because being forced to pay high prices for medical care is something that is not new to anyone who is disabled or chronically ill.