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Monday 9am - 4pm Tuesday 9am - 4pm Wednesday 9am - 4pm Thursday 9am - 4pm Friday 9am - 4pm

Cassie Gardner - Ability West

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Dubbo, NSW
Cassie Gardner - Ability West

Ability West is growing. We support all people to help them identify and fulfill their dreams.

My services now include:
*Life Coaching for women, people with disability and supporters
*Mentoring People with disability
*Micro business/enterprise

24/04/2026

What does a good life actually look like? 👇

Not the version on someone else's timeline. Not the life that fits neatly into a service plan or an outcome measure. Your good life. The one where you feel like you belong. Where you're doing things that matter to you. Where the people around you actually know you.

At Ability West, this question is at the heart of everything we do. When Cassie and Mark founded this organisation back in 2013, they were frustrated by a disability sector full of unspoken rules, rules that quietly told people where and how they were allowed to belong. They decided it was time to rewrite them.

Because a good life isn't something that gets handed to you. It's something you build, piece by piece, decision by decision. With the right knowledge. Practical skills. People in your corner who believe in your potential before you do yourself 🙌

23/04/2026

Reconnect with your body through movement and dance! ✨

Freya's 60-minute online embodiment dance sessions are designed to help you feel grounded and connected through movement, all from the comfort of your home.

During the session, you will:
✨Energise your body and get the blood flowing with dance exercises
✨Cultivate a deeper connection to your body
✨Discover new ways to incorporate movement into your every day
✨After the exercise, we’ll come together for an open discussion about movement with a supportive group of like-minded individuals.

This event is inclusive and welcoming for people with disabilities.

There is still time to grab a free spot for tonight's workshop at 6pm AEST.

Register here 👉https://events.humanitix.com/expression-in-motion-embodiment-workshops

22/04/2026

Tomorrow, the 23rd of April, Freya will be holding a free online Embodiment Dance Workshop around expression and moving from what is real for you, moment to moment.

This session is an invitation to practice tuning in and asking yourself;

✨How do I want to move?
✨How do I want to express?
✨What feels honest right now?

In this session, there will be:
👉 45 minutes of movement meditation using breath and sound
👉 Gentle stretching and strengthening
👉 Energy moving through the body in ways that feel supportive
👉 Connection to earth, self, and community

All of this unfolds inside a compassionate, gently held space, because the world can feel intense right now. This is a place to soften, to feel, and to reconnect with your inner authority.

All creative expression is welcome; all kinds of movement are welcome.

Register here 👉 https://events.humanitix.com/expression-in-motion-embodiment-workshops

22/04/2026

Creating your best life, isn't found inside your comfort zone, it's built just beyond it.

Nick Gleeson knows this better than most. Paralympian, adventurer, and author, Nick has spent his life proving that growth lives on the other side of discomfort.

In episode 5, of Season 2 of the Inclusion Project, Nick tries embodied dance for the very first time and discovers that creating a life worth living means being willing to feel uncertain, vulnerable, and completely new at something.

This is a conversation about courage, curiosity, and what it really takes to design a life that feels full and meaningful.

🎧 Listen now: https://fitproject.learnworlds.com/podcasts

17/04/2026

Here's something everyone deserves to hear 👇

Your feelings make complete sense ✨

For a lot of people with disability, hearing those words took far too long.

Feelings that were labelled as difficult, dramatic, or too much. Experiences that were minimised. A sense of self that took years to rebuild.

The connection between our past and how we feel today is real, and for people with disability, that past often includes navigating systems, relationships, and a world that wasn't always designed with you in mind.

Understanding that connection doesn't mean staying stuck in it. It means you get to move forward with more clarity, more compassion for yourself, and better tools for the hard days.

Your feelings have always made sense. Sometimes we just need the space and support to understand why.

If you resonate with this, keep your eyes peeled, Ability West has something just for you coming in 2026 👀

15/04/2026

The Inclusion Project Podcast & Ability West is here for everyone: People with a disability, family members, support workers, and organisations ready to do inclusion better.

Series 1 and Series 2 of the Podcast are both available now through our website. Create a free login and listen whenever works for you.

You'll also find a growing library of inclusion resources to help build communities that are accessible, respectful, and genuinely welcoming for everyone.

Because everyone deserves to find their place and thrive ✨

Explore the podcasts and resources here: https://fitproject.learnworlds.com/podcasts

13/04/2026

On the 23rd of April, Freya will be holidng a free online Embodiment Dance Workshop around expression and finding your own form and moving from what is real for you, moment to moment.

This session is an invitation to practice tuning in and asking yourself;

✨How do I want to move?
✨How do I want to express?
✨What feels honest right now?

In this session, there will be:

👉 45 minutes of movement meditation using breath and sound
👉 Gentle stretching and strengthening
👉 Energy moving through the body in ways that feel supportive
👉 Connection to earth, self, and community

All of this unfolds inside a compassionate, gently held space, because the world can feel intense right now. This is a place to soften, to feel, and to reconnect with your inner authority.

All creative expression is welcome; all kinds of movement are welcome.

Register here 👉 https://events.humanitix.com/expression-in-motion-embodiment-workshops

10/04/2026

The people around you are one of the most powerful parts of your support network 🙌

It's the friend who checks in. The family member who drives you to appointments without being asked. The neighbour who's known you since you were a kid. The online community that gets what you're going through when no one in your town does.

These are what we call unpaid supports and alongside the right paid supports, they're often what help shape a full and connected life.

For young people with disability in regional, rural and remote NSW, all of these relationships matter. When formal services can often have wait-times or be hard to access, knowing who's in your corner and how to work with them can make all the difference.

At Ability West, we believe that truly good support brings everything together. Our founder Cassie has spent over 25 years helping people build lives that are held up by both the people around them and the right professional supports working alongside them.

Knowing how to ask for what you need. Knowing who can help with what. Knowing how to hold those relationships well over time. These are skills. And like any skill, they can be learned and we're here to help with that.

Who's one person in your life that is an unpaid support network? 👇

08/04/2026

Your support network is the people who celebrate your wins, big and small. Who show up when things get hard. Who know your story and still choose to be in your corner🙌

On Episode 4 of The Inclusion Project Podcast, Ronan Soussa put it beautifully: having friends makes him feel warm, appreciated, and comfortable.

That's what real connection does. It creates spaces where you feel accepted, understood, and supported, just as you are.

A strong support network looks different for everyone. It might include family, friends, a support worker who truly gets you, a community group, or even an online space where you finally feel understood. There's no one-size-fits-all and that's exactly the point.

For people with disability, having the right people around you, both paid and unpaid, isn't just helpful. It can be life-changing. It's the difference between simply getting through the day and actually living it on your own terms.

Building that network takes time, intention, and sometimes a little support to get started. That's something we think about a lot at Ability West.

🎧Listen to the podcast episode here:
https://fitproject.learnworlds.com/podcasts

06/04/2026

Here's how Freya Wolf, our embodiment facilitator, describes embodiment: It's about coming home to your body. Not pushing it, not performing for anyone, not trying to look a certain way. Just listening. Noticing what's there. Moving with what's present rather than against it.

For a lot of us, especially people who've experienced disability, chronic pain, trauma, or simply a world that hasn't always made room for the way our bodies work, being in our body can feel complicated. Sometimes we've learned to disconnect from it. To push through. To treat it as something to manage rather than something to listen to.

Embodiment practices, like the movement and dance sessions Freya facilitates, are a gentle way back. Not a performance. Not a routine you have to get right. Just movement. Breath. Sensation. Your body, on its own terms.

Freya's sessions are fully inclusive and adaptable, all movement is invitational, and you can participate in whatever way works for your body. You just need a Zoom link and a space where you can move (or rest) comfortably.

And the best part? They're completely free.

Freya's next session: Expression in Motion is coming up on the 9th of April at 1pm and 23rd of April at 6pm AEST.

To register 👉 https://events.humanitix.com/expression-in-motion-embodiment-workshops

02/04/2026

What does it mean to find your purpose? ✨

At Ability West, we believe every person with disability has something extraordinary to offer. Unique skills. Passions. A way of seeing and experiencing the world that brings genuine value to the people and communities around them.

Finding purpose isn't about fitting into someone else's expectations, it's about recognising the gifts that are already within you and building a life around what truly lights you up.

For people with disabilities in regional and rural NSW, that journey is filled with real possibility. Community connection, lived experience, and the strength that comes from navigating life on your own terms are powerful foundations for a purposeful life.

At Ability West, we walk alongside you in that journey, helping you identify your strengths, explore your passions, and take steps toward a life that feels meaningful, joyful, and completely your own.

Because purpose grows when we back ourselves and we're here to back you every step of the way.

Comment below: What's something you're genuinely good at that the world doesn't know about yet? 👇

31/03/2026

In Episode 1 of Season 2 of The Inclusion Project, Cassie leads a powerful conversation about something we all search for; purpose ✨

So what is purpose? 👇

According to Cassie, it's deeply personal and grounded in the everyday. It's how you feel when you wake up in the morning, the joy you find in daily life, and the sense that what you do matters, not just to yourself, but to the people and community around you.

Purpose is what connects you to something bigger, and when you find it, it has the power to transform your life and the lives of others. Purpose is about more than just goals, it's understanding what drives you, what matters to you, and using that to shape a life that feels truly your own.

🎧 Listen to the podcast episode here:
https://fitproject.learnworlds.com/podcasts

Address

Dubbo, NSW
2830

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 4pm
Tuesday	9am - 4pm
Wednesday	9am - 4pm
Thursday	9am - 4pm
Friday	9am - 4pm

Telephone

+61419091939

Website

http://www.abilitywest.org.au/, https://events.humanitix.com/strength-in-self-and-community-a-free-3-part-online-embodie

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