Ishbel Straker - Treating Mental Health & Addiction

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Ishbel Straker - Treating Mental Health & Addiction

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Founder | CEO | Consultant Nurse & Therapist
Mental Health & Neurodiversity Expert
Justice Campaigner for Regulatory Reform
Public Speaker supporting clinical training and research |Non Exec Director Rumble | Writer

PA - mjones@pause-wellbeing.co.uk

13/03/2026

The Hidden Cost
DBS, the NMC and the Nurses they’re failing

https://www.theregulatoryjusticefoundation.org.uk

11/03/2026

What a week and it’s only Wednesday.
Regulatory Justice meetings. Amplifying the voices of those harmed by the very systems meant to protect them. Driving real, systemic change.
We’re not slowing down. 🔥

06/03/2026

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick❤️‍🩹” Proverbs 13:12

05/03/2026

What a day yesterday was.
I spent time in individual conversations with some truly incredible people, each one bringing their own insight and wisdom into how we can continue to support those navigating the regulatory system and how we push harder for the change that is so desperately needed.
The call for a Public Inquiry into how our regulatory systems operate is not going away. The legislation is woefully outdated and until that is honestly addressed, meaningful change will remain miniscule. That is not good enough for the people living through these processes right now.
We ended the evening with our fortnightly Regulatory Justice Foundation support group and, as always, it was everything. People sharing that they genuinely look forward to this space. That it is somewhere they feel seen, heard and empowered to keep moving forward. That means the world.
And here is the thing I never expected to feel. I am genuinely grateful for having had to go through this myself, because it gave me the privilege of meeting some of the most inspiring people I have ever encountered and the honour of doing this journey alongside them.
The work continues. 💙

03/03/2026

Tomorrow night. 8pm. And you are so welcome.
If you’re navigating a fitness-to-practice investigation right now — I want you to know something before you join us:
You are wanted here.
Your journey is valid.
You are so much more than your professional identity.
And there is purpose in your pain — even when it’s impossible to see it.
We don’t have all the answers. But we walk through this together.
Head to our website for the link and join us tomorrow night. The Regulatory Justice Foundation peer support group, 8pm.
You don’t have to do this alone. 🖤

02/03/2026

Is it just me or are you having to start prepping for the week ahead earlier and earlier into the weekend? I used to be able to switch off until around 7pm on a Sunday night but now it feels like my weekend is filled with paying it forward for the week ahead. The mental load doesn’t just disappear because it’s Saturday or Sunday and I think that’s something we don’t talk about enough.
I think it’s the switching of hats that can feel so mentally demanding at times but it’s the price to be paid. One moment you’re a professional carrying the weight of a hundred responsibilities and the next you’re trying to be fully present as a parent, a friend, a person. The transition between those worlds is rarely smooth and it takes real effort to make the shift.
I sat and reflected on this as I tidied up after my baby’s 3rd birthday party. Watching her laugh and celebrate surrounded by the people who love her was a reminder of what truly matters. We are all just people who want to live content lives and the regulatory process has a habit of robbing us of that. It strips away time, peace of mind and the simple joy of being present in ordinary moments.
It’s so important to intentionally allow those glimmers of normality that, in our lowest points, can truly ground us. Hold onto them. They are not a distraction from the hard stuff. They are the reason we keep going.

27/02/2026

I want to be honest with you today.
Running two healthcare organisations, leading a national advocacy campaign, sitting on a board, proceeding with a doctorate, and carrying ongoing legal proceedings simultaneously is not a highlight reel. It is relentless. And some days it is genuinely hard.
I do not share that for sympathy. I share it because I think there is a particular kind of isolation that comes with senior leadership, especially for women, where the expectation to perform strength is so high that there is almost no room to admit when it costs something.
It always costs something.
What I have learned is that the cost is worth paying when the work is genuinely meaningful. And all of this is. Every single strand of it.
But sustainable leadership requires anchors. Mine are faith, a community I trust, and a clarity of purpose that does not move even when everything else feels uncertain.
If you are leading something significant and finding it heavy this week, this is for you. You are not failing. You are carrying something that matters.

26/02/2026

In 2019 I founded ISC Care with a single conviction: that private mental health care should be rigorous, evidence based, and genuinely human.
Five years on we are a CQC registered service with 20 staff, 2000 plus patients, and services across Liverpool, Leeds, and London. Pause Wellbeing sits alongside us, providing therapeutic services to the people who often find it hardest to ask for help.
We are also developing the UK's first Medical Cannabis ADHD Clinic, because the gaps in adult ADHD care, particularly for women, are not a niche concern. They are a systemic failure that deserves a serious clinical response.
Building this as a nurse, not a business school graduate, has meant learning constantly, getting things wrong, and refusing to let the difficulty of it be a reason to stop.
If you are a clinician thinking about independent practice, or a founder navigating growth in the health and social care sector, I am genuinely happy to share what I have learned. My door is open.

25/02/2026

Something I do not talk about enough is my board role with Rumble.
Rumble is a movement that has spent years reaching men and equipping them to live authentically, with purpose and with courage. It is faith led, community rooted, and genuinely transformational.
I joined the board because I believe that mental health and wellbeing cannot be the conversation we only have with some people. Men are struggling in silence at alarming rates, and movements like Rumble are doing the kind of deep, long term work that actually changes that.
As a psychiatric nurse, as a founder, and as someone who cares about whole communities thriving, it felt like exactly the right place to put some of my time and experience.
What does leadership beyond your immediate work look like for you? I would love to hear in the comments.

24/02/2026

I want to talk about The Regulatory Justice Foundation today, because I think it is the most important thing I have ever built.
Nearly six years ago I raised concerns about unsafe clinical practice. What followed was an NMC fitness to practise investigation that has shaped every corner of my professional and personal life since.
I am not sharing this for sympathy. I am sharing it because I know I am not alone, and neither are you.
Healthcare professionals across the UK are navigating investigations in silence, without adequate support, and in some cases without surviving them. That cannot continue.
The RJF exists to change the system, support those inside it, and make sure that Parliament, the public, and the profession understand what is really happening.
If you know someone going through this, please share this post. It could matter more than you know.

23/02/2026

I want to introduce myself properly this week, because I think context matters.
I am Ishbel Straker. Founder and CEO of ISC Care and Pause Wellbeing. Psychiatric Nurse Prescriber. Clinical Lecturer at Edge Hill University. Board member of Rumble. And the founder of The Regulatory Justice Foundation.
Every single one of those roles grew out of the same place: a belief that people deserve better, and a refusal to accept that the way things are is the way they have to be.
This week I am sharing more of the work, the story, and the vision. I would love for you to be part of the conversation.

20/02/2026

Having people in your corner isn’t a luxury. It’s survival.
I know that because I’ve lived it. I’ve been in the dark place where you wonder if anyone is coming. Where the system feels designed to break you. Where silence feels like the only option.
It isn’t.
I am proud to stand with every single person being crushed by the weight of regulatory proceedings through The Regulatory Justice Foundation. You are not alone. I see you. I’ve got you.
And today I get to say something that genuinely fills me with hope.
I am now represented by Bold Management. I told them my story. They didn’t flinch. They didn’t hesitate. They just said we’re with you.
Do you know how rare that is?
In a world full of people who look the other way when things get uncomfortable, these people ran towards it. That matters. That changes everything.
This fight is far from over. But I am ready. 🖤

www.bold-management.com/home/ishbel-straker

Address

Honeycombe Building Edmund Street
Liverpool
L39NG

Website

http://www.ishbelstraker.co.uk/

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