Joyful Being

24/07/2025

When I became a mum, I was shocked by how rarely these things were said out loud.

As a psychologist, I’d heard them in therapy rooms for years.
But in real life? In mothers’ groups? At the playground?
Silence. Smiles. Maybe a quiet “same” over coffee if you were lucky.

These five truths came up again and again in sessions this week — and they deserve more space.

Let’s make it normal to speak honestly about this season.
Let’s have real conversations.
Let’s stop pretending this is easy.

23/07/2025

14/07/2025

It’s Birth Trauma Awareness Week, and I want to gently name something I see all the time in my work with new mothers:

So many don’t realise they’ve experienced birth trauma.
They just think they’re failing.

👉 “I couldn’t relax.”
👉 “I didn’t feel connected.”
👉 “I was always on edge.”
👉 “I felt nothing—or way too much.”
👉 “Everyone said the baby was fine, so why wasn’t I?”

But these aren’t signs you’re a bad mother.
They’re often signs of a nervous system in survival mode.
They’re trauma responses—not personal flaws.

Sometimes birth doesn’t just bring a baby—it brings up everything your body has held for years.
Especially if you grew up with emotional neglect, chaos, or fear (what we call ACEs—Adverse Childhood Experiences).

💛 If your birth felt bigger, scarier, or harder to recover from than you expected—there’s a reason.
And you are not alone.

This is a big part of the work I do: helping mothers understand what’s actually going on beneath the overwhelm.
And walking with them toward healing that feels safe, steady, and real.

💛 You deserve to feel well—not just functional.

13/06/2025

🤰 Scan coming up? You’re not alone if your body’s already bracing.

For many, ultrasounds are reassuring.
But for others? They come with a racing heart, clenched jaw, and that familiar swirl of anxiety.

Whether it’s due to a previous loss, or a traumatic experience - scan anxiety is real. And it makes perfect sense.

✨ You’re not broken — your body might just be remembering.

Past experiences (even ones you thought you’d moved on from) can quietly shape how safe or unsafe you feel in

I am working on something special behind the scenes to help.

To validate. To support. To soothe.

In the meantime, check in with yourself.
Where do you sit on the “How Am I Feeling?” scale today?
💛😟😱

(Turns out, cats are pretty good at modeling nervous system states.)

It’s okay to feel on edge. You don’t have to go through it alone 🩷

19/05/2025

I turned 30 and my life imploded.

I thought I was happily married and about to start a family.
One year into marriage — after 12 years together — he left me.
The night before moving house.
I was blindsided.
Suddenly single, broke, and moving into a home I couldn’t afford.

While my friends were having babies, I was getting divorced and burning toast for dinner.

But slowly, I rebuilt.
One night, a Rod Stewart lookalike pulled my hair at a bar (yes, really) — and that random moment led me to Mr Joyful Being.
He wasn’t in the band. He just happened to be nearby — and he stepped in. The honesty was refreshing.

We had a whirlwind romance. Flew to Europe. Fell pregnant.
I was proud. I’d survived heartbreak and created something new.

Then, at 20 weeks, the pregnancy ended.
I was broken — not just from grief, but from how disempowering the whole process was.
And once again, I had to completely start over.

That loss also meant stepping away from the career I’d worked 10+ years for and saying no to a dream job opportunity.

As a psychologist, I couldn’t practice from an open wound. Working with kids as a child psychologist was too painful.

My next pregnancy was high-risk. I used every cent I’d saved from my divorce to get through it.
Then came COVID lockdowns.
An unsettled baby who cried so much.
All while homeschooling a stepson.
No village.

I kept going — until I couldn’t.
I crashed.

Eventually, I was diagnosed with complex PTSD.
All those disempowering experiences + early motherhood had opened the door to childhood memories I didn’t know were there.

I committed to healing.
EMDR.
Therapy.
The real work. The hard work.

And now — I’m turning 40.
I am living it, feeling it, and rising anyway

This isn’t the life I planned.
It’s the one I rebuilt through healing, evolving and owning my story.

And it’s more me than ever. 💛

10/05/2025

For anyone navigating Mother’s Day with a heavy heart — miscarriage, infertility, TFMR, neonatal loss, estrangement, the loss of your own mum, or the grief that comes with parenting after trauma — I see you.

There’s no right way to feel today.
There’s no timeline for grief.
And you don’t owe this day anything.

You have full permission to be a hot mess.
This is not the day to be a high achiever.
Blankets, snacks, ugly crying — all completely acceptable coping strategies ❤️

08/05/2025

Just because you’re functioning doesn’t mean you’re thriving.

You can be doing all the things—and still feel like you’re running on empty.

Therapy isn’t a last resort. It’s support for your nervous system, your stories, your stuck places. It’s care for the parts of you that no one else sees—but deeply matter.

Your mental health is worth investing in.
Your brain deserves more than burnout.

If this hit home, you’re not alone. Save this for when you need the reminder—or share it with someone who needs to hear it too.

24/04/2025

BIG news alert! There’s more brewing behind the scenes…
Bec is officially starting Monday… and guess what? She’s already nearly fully booked. Honestly, I’m not even a little bit surprised — she’s that good. But there is another reason she joined the team. We have been planning something special.

We know that when you’re deep in the early parenting trenches, getting to therapy can feel about as realistic as a relaxing hot coffee (remember those?). Between limited support, time that disappears faster than a toddler with an open snack packet, and all the emotional chaos… it’s tough. We get it — we’ve lived it too.

So, we’ve been cooking up something new.
Something that meets you where you are, right when you need it the most.

Something that helps you find your feet (and maybe even your joy) in those wild early years.

Because yes, the days can feel never-ending — but the years really do fly by.

And we don’t want you to miss the magic that’s there when you’re feeling more like yourself.

Stay tuned… we can’t wait to share more with you soon!

14/04/2025

New Psychologist!! Same quality, collaboration and care. At Joyful Being we are all about working as a team ❤️

Bec will be officially in the team from Monday 28th April. But she has truly hit the ground running behind the scenes ensuring that she is well connected with and the team.

We have been working hard for months to make this happen and I can’t wait for you to meet her ❤️

If you would like to see Bec please email hello@joyfulbeing.com.au and lovely Mel, our admin support, will send you all of the information 🫶🏻

01/04/2025

Oh my gosh my heart hurts to know that this is still a message that girls receive.

We were at the supermarket and my daughter was exhausted and teary after swimming lessons when she was told to stop crying and look beautiful 😢

Understandably she cried more. I couldn’t get us out of there quick enough. Unfortunately these moments will happen to us. We can’t protect our children from every comment.

I checked in with my daughter when it was just the two of us. I told her the following:

🩷 I love you always, even when you are crying
🩷 Crying helps us feel better
🩷 I am sorry that was said to you. There was nothing you did wrong. I understand you are exhausted and wanted me to know you were ready to go home
🩷 I always want to know how you are feeling so I can help you and support you

It’s important to remember that our consistent message and love as parents will always be stronger than random comments from strangers. My daughter reflected afterwards….”Why didn’t she understand I was exhausted and wanted rest” 🫶🏻

17/03/2025

I am not joking when I say this - Bec is a unicorn therapist 🦄 🌟

She ticks every box of what I was looking for:
🦄 Extensive experience in the perinatal space
🦄 A background as a child psychologist
🦄 EMDR trained
🦄 The warmest and most compassionate presence that instantly makes you feel safe and supported

Honestly if I could have Bec as my personal psychologist I would. But since we are also friends, the least I can do is share the gift of her with all of you.

Bookings will be opening shortly. You can send an email to hello@joyfulbeing.com.au to get in first and put your name down if you are keen.

Bec will officially start at Juno on Monday 28th April 🌟