Many parents and children rely on teachers to take responsibility for reducing bullying in schools, yet students themselves are generally more aware about what is occurring between students than are staff members. Education should therefore empower children to deal with and respond to bullying in a healthy manner.

 

I graduated from Monash University in 1993 with a Bachelor of Nursing then branched into psychiatry.  It was here that I developed a special interest in children’s self-esteem, coping mechanisms and the effects on their mental health.

 

In 2003 I launched the “Beauty Within” program dedicated to increase children’s awareness in relation to bullying in the school system.  The “Beauty Within” program is an explosive education tool based upon my personal story of bullying and harassment following a near fatal accident at age eleven.  It relates the traumas and triumphs I endured in the ultimate goal to lead a normal life.

 

I am passionate about positively altering children’s perception of themselves, thus creating greater resilience and survival techniques for life.  The “Beauty Within” program is structured to achieve this.  

 

As a result of this presentation and through hundreds of student requests, I have written about the events of my accident and return to school in a book titled Victim or Victorious: a True Survivor’s Story.

 

Other programs:

• Affirmations

• Assertive Speaking