From Stage to Self: Embracing the Art of my own Story

Hello beautiful,

I recently started to piece together the core stories and experiences that have shaped my life, direction and path thus far - it took me right back to age nine, when I made two big decisions with my first monthly paycheck from performing in "Les Miserables" at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne: I bought our first dishwasher and booked a warm, sunny holiday to the Gold Coast for our family of 7!

I can still see myself in that moment—wide-eyed and certain, telling my mum exactly what I wanted. I never wanted to wash another dish again, and I craved the feeling of sand between my toes and salty air in my lungs. 

That dishwasher was a revelation, and the holiday was everything I’d imagined. I loved packing and unpacking that shiny new appliance, feeling a strange sense of accomplishment each time I did. And in that big GC holiday apartment, I’d run down the long hallway, my heart racing as I reached the heavy glass door that led to the massive balcony. I’d fling it open and step into the wind, gazing out at the endless coastline, feeling like I was on top of the world.

My acting career began when I was six, and by the time I was twenty-six, it was over. Twenty years of living and breathing the life of a performer had shaped me into someone who only valued herself when there was applause at the end of the day.

I became a chameleon, slipping into other people’s lives, singing their songs, reciting their words, but if you asked me what I was truly good at, I couldn’t have told you. I was always chasing something better, something brighter. "Good" was never enough for me. Talent wasn’t a guaranteed golden ticket, after all.

The constant scrutiny, both internal and external, became suffocating, and I didn’t realize that there was another way to exist. This was the world I knew—a world where the arts had been my playground, and I was just a sponge, soaking up everything around me and trying to look the part.

Don’t get me wrong—I loved it, every bit of it. Performing was my passion, woven into the very fabric of who I am. It still is. I was good, really good, and I had a career that many would envy.

Yet, there’s a part of me that wishes I could go back and wrap my arms around my 24-year-old self. She was three months away from graduating from Australia’s most prestigious drama school, weighing just 48 kilograms, and experiencing mysterious, terrifying fainting spells where every muscle would involuntarily shake. My body had finally taken center stage, forcing me to stop and listen. Nearly two decades of relentless pursuit had led to what I now call my "nervous breakthrough."

I was determined to finish my Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Music Theatre. That was non-negotiable. So, I took the three weeks of sick leave they offered me, with a stern warning: If I didn’t return within those three weeks, I would be expelled, just two months shy of graduating and touring Australia with our graduation show.

That’s when the medical model stepped in, offering a quick fix—a little packet of pills to get me through. I promised myself I’d only take them for six months, just enough to cross the finish line of graduation and transition out of drama school.

I honored that six-month timeline, weaning myself off the pills. It was terrifying, isolating, and confronting. But it was also one of the most empowering and rewarding experiences of my life. For the first time, I began to feel into my own power, my joy, my essence. I realized that I mattered, not for what I did, but for who I was.

I went from mastering the art of communicating with an audience, to realizing that the way I communicated with myself had built an inner wall I no longer wanted to climb.

So, I dove headfirst into the world of self-development, traveling and living across the globe to be in rooms with thought leaders, healers, therapists, and experts—people who were deeply engaged in the exploration of self.

I dropped the mask, shed the costume, and began to learn the inner dialogue of the artist herself—the woman behind the performance.

I realised I matter and what matters to me matters.

Embracing myself didn’t just change my life; it liberated it. 

It turns out that the key to getting better was bettering my relationship with myself.

Today, I believe and teach that the quality of your relationships, starting with the relationship you have with yourself, is the opening credits of your life.

Better relationships = better life.

Those memories of buying that dishwasher and taking my family on warm, sunny holidays are still fun to look back on. But even more profound is the journey of discovering myself through a career that stripped me bare, only to create an opportunity for me to begin exploring, expressing, and supporting countless others in touching the heART of who they truly are.

The greatest role I play is the one where I believe that I matter—not just in the spotlight, but in the quiet, seemingly insignificant moments, like when I’m packing the dishwasher and turning off the lights to call it a day. 

That’s a wrap on the Lights, Camera, Action version of me, I won’t be waiting in the wings for the audience's applause; I’ll be out of the theatre, giving audience to the world that awaits.

Reach out and share with me a story that has shaped who you are and what matters most to you! I'd love to hear about the moments, big or small, that have helped you become the person you are today. Whether it's a challenge you've overcome, a decision that changed your path, or an experience that opened your heart, your story matters. I'm excited to listen!

Huge love

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