The Hair Therapist

Over the next two weeks (Part 1 and 2) Mel sits down with Dominic Beirne for a raw, courageous and deeply reflective conversation.

Dom’s life has been shaped by experiences that would break many - adoption, childhood sexual abuse, grief, addiction, domestic and family violence, profound loss, and a catastrophic motorcycle accident that left him a paraplegic at 47. And just when he thought he had survived the worst, Dom faced c...

There are places that don’t just support learning - they ignite it. And after spending time with Lorna and Alyce from Country Universities Centre Southern Downs, it’s impossible not to feel fired up about what’s happening in their corner of the region.

They haven’t just opened a study space. They’ve built a launchpad.

A hub where regional students walk in carrying big dreams… and walk out believin...

Some stories are stitched together across countries, cultures, and seasons of life and Ruth Cleminson’s is one of them. Before she became a yoga teacher, Pilates instructor, somatic therapist, and co‑founder of Flourish Community Solutions and Flourish Academy, Ruth was a young woman moving around the world, raising her children in different countries while supporting her husband’s military career. Those years shaped he...

Some people spend a lifetime trying to understand who they are. Others are forced to learn early, through experiences that reshape their bodies, their identities, and the way they move through the world. In this episode, Mel sits down with Bec Gill, a woman whose story is equal parts courage, complexity, and quiet, persistent strength.

Born with a congenital heart condition, Bec’s childhood was marked by hospitals, uncertainty...

Trigger Warning: This episode contains discussions of child sexual abuse, family and domestic violence, alcoholism, childhood trauma, and cultural identity. We acknowledge that these topics may be triggering for our First Nations & Torres Strait Islander Peoples and for anyone with lived experience. If this brings up anything for you please turn this episode off.

Some stories begin in places children should never have to naviga...

Trigger Warning: This episode contains discussions of child sexual abuse, family and domestic violence, alcoholism, childhood trauma, and cultural identity. We acknowledge that these topics may be triggering for our First Nations & Torres Strait Islander Peoples and for anyone with lived experience. If this brings up anything for you please turn this episode off.

Some stories begin in places children should never have to naviga...

A year ago, Elizabeth sat with us and shared the moment her world split in two - the diagnosis, the fear, the grief, and the fierce determination to survive. It was raw, it was honest, and it touched every person who has ever faced cancer or stood beside someone who has.

Today, she’s back. Twelve months later. And this conversation is different - deeper, quieter, and shaped by the kind of truth that only comes after the dust s...

Some stories arrive heavy, complicated, and almost impossible to imagine - yet they reveal the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit. Today, Mel sits down with Michael, a man whose life began with trauma no child should ever endure. His early years were marked by sexual abuse, leaving wounds that would follow him into adolescence and shape the choices he made as a young man.

As he slipped into the world of alcohol and drugs, ...

Some stories don’t just mark a life - they redirect it. Today, Mel sits down with Natascha Consigli, a woman whose journey has been shaped by profound loss, unprocessed trauma, and the long, courageous work of rebuilding a sense of belonging in the world.

Natascha’s early life was struck by tragedy with the death of her mother at a young age, a rupture that left her navigating childhood without the emotional anchor every...

Some stories don’t just mark a life - they redirect it. Today, Mel sits down with Natascha Consigli, a woman whose journey has been shaped by profound loss, unprocessed trauma, and the long, courageous work of rebuilding a sense of belonging in the world.

Natascha’s early life was struck by tragedy with the death of her mother at a young age, a rupture that left her navigating childhood without the emotional anchor every...

Some stories don’t just move us - they open us. Today, Mel sits down with Gia Sinha, a woman whose life has been shaped by experiences no child should ever have to endure, and whose courage has carried her through some of the darkest terrain a human being can face.

From a childhood marked by wounds that were buried too deep for words, to the moment, at thirty eight, when a cancer diagnosis forced everything she had held inside...

Some stories don’t just move us - they open us. Today, Mel sits down with Gia Sinha, a woman whose life has been shaped by experiences no child should ever have to endure, and whose courage has carried her through some of the darkest terrain a human being can face.

From a childhood marked by wounds that were buried too deep for words, to the moment, at thirty eight, when a cancer diagnosis forced everything she had held inside...

Every now and then, you meet someone whose life’s work is so deeply aligned with who they are that the impact they create feels almost effortless. Today’s guest, Chris Wildeboer, is one of those rare people.

Chris is a Certified Speaking Professional, a long‑standing member of Professional Speakers Australia, and the founder of Balance Central, a space she has spent more than 20 years shaping into a catalyst for genuine,...

Some movements are born from strategy. Others are born from fire. Lioness Den is both.

In this episode, Mel sits down with Jenna Wilson and Rachael McKenzie - two women who have turned lived experience, professional grit, and a fierce sense of justice into a movement reshaping what’s possible for single mothers across Australia.

Jenna, the founder of Lioness Den, has built a community and social-impact organisation that challen...

Today’s guest is powerful, polished, and razor‑sharp, but beneath the success is a woman who has walked through heartbreak, survival, reinvention, toxic relationships, divorce, resilience, and the gritty, unglamorous work of rebuilding a life from the ground up.

Belinda J Shaw is an author, speaker, coach, stylist, and the President of Professional Speakers Australia QLD/NT. She’s also a fierce advocate for women over 55...

Some lives read like a novel you can’t put down - chaotic, funny, raw, and unexpectedly profound. Scott Lamond’s story is exactly that. Growing up in the wild western suburbs of Melbourne, his childhood was anything but quiet. He and his mates spent their days mischievously exploring the neighbourhood, building skate ramps, riding boards, and making noise in punk bands. He was kicked out of three schools before he turne...

Some lives read like a novel you can’t put down - chaotic, funny, raw, and unexpectedly profound. Scott Lamond’s story is exactly that. Growing up in the wild western suburbs of Melbourne, his childhood was anything but quiet. He and his mates spent their days mischievously exploring the neighbourhood, building skate ramps, riding boards, and making noise in punk bands. He was kicked out of three schools before he turne...

In this episode, Mel sits down with Shelby Mahoney, Intake Coordinator at Children by Choice - Queensland’s leading pro‑choice, all‑options pregnancy support service. Shelby is often the very first voice people hear when they reach out for help, and she brings a rare blend of compassion, clarity, and deep sector knowledge to one of the most complex and misunderstood areas of healthcare: reproductive rights.

Across this convers...

Some people volunteer. And then there are people like Cathy Barber. People who weave service so deeply into their lives that it becomes part of who they are.

Today, Mel sits down with a woman whose journey from London to Brisbane is stitched together by generosity, community, and an unwavering belief in showing up for others.

Cathy is a long‑serving volunteer and Branch Coordinator with Rosies – Friends on the Street, an organ...