Letters to our Yesterday

Sarah moved to Australia from the UK seven years ago. She has worked as a beauty therapist for many years, though recently took the brave step to open her own business, The Retreat Room. Sarah incorporates Reiki (a gentle form of energy healing) into many of her holistic treatments and has found it works especially well to provide women with the care and nurturing they often don’t receive. We chat about the importance of sometimes putting ourselves first and Sarah explains how Reiki can work for many different people.

Inda grew up in Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia. She studied medicine in the UK, before settling in Australia after meeting her husband, a fellow doctor. Having her daughter four years ago changed Inda’s view of her career and she recently stepped back from the fast-paced world of surgical training to take a year off. This year, she is pursuing (and enjoying) her creative passions of writing and art to the fullest.

Rochelle Courtenay is the founder and managing director of Australian Charity, Share the Dignity. We chat about how she began the charity four years ago after learning that homeless women were going without basic sanitary items during their menstrual cycle. Rochelle was shocked and decided to do something about it. This incredible charity, with a team of over 4000 volunteers, aims to share the dignity with homeless and at-risk women. The charity’s core belief is that all women matter and deserve dignity and justice.

Maya Linnell is an Australian author who lives in rural Victoria. Her debut novel, Wildflower Ridge, published by Allen and Unwin was released in June and has been climbing the Australian fiction charts since. Maya was surrounded by books and writing from a young age and began her career as a journalist. We chat about her writing journey as well as her other loves; baking and gardening. Maya’s letter to her younger self is a heartfelt message about hope through the difficulty of facing mental health.To find out more about Maya and her novel Wildflower Ridge visit her website www.mayalinnell.com You can also follow her journey on Instagram @maya.linnell.writes or Facebook @maya.linnell.author

Banu Sekendur was born in Turkey and lived through a difficult childhood before moving to the United States. After suffering a traumatic break-up she became so unwell she ended up in the emergency department. Following this dark night of the soul, Banu moved to Hawaii and spent time healing and rebuilding herself. We chat about her difficult journey and the deep understandings she has gained about self-love.

Fatima is the co-founder and managing director of eWave, Australia’s most successful and awarded digital commerce agency. We chat about the beginning of her career – building a digital business with her brothers from their home in Austria as teenagers. We also discuss the moment Fatima lost everything because of a betrayal and the darkness that followed. Fatima shares with me how she re-built her life and career upon moving to Australia with her husband, the way motherhood has changed her business and how she has managed to overcome self-limiting beliefs.‘You can really do whatever you want; set the goal and you will get there.’