#6: Running Toward A Solution For Mental Health in Mining with Brooke McIntosh

Join us for a powerful episode as elite athlete and mental health advocate Brooke McIntosh shares her transformative journey of running 1,600 kilometers in the scorching hot Pilbara region of Western Australia, to raise awareness for mental health in mining and construction, especially in the FIFO industry.

Over the past few months Brooke has raised $73,000 for mental health organizations, 20Talk and Blue Tree Project through this incredible run. 

I had the opportunity to catch up with Brooke the day before she set off for this month long run, and again on her return, capturing the challenges, along with the mental, emotional and spiritual growth that came with such a feat. 

This episode speaks to common stigma and challenges in mining and construction, and for those working FIFO rosters away from friends and family. It also shares some great inspiration and insight on everyday topics including relationships, purpose, and the power of community, gratutide and random acts of kindness. 

Other discussion points in the ep…

• The complex nature of gender dynamics in mining & constuction
• Creating safe spaces and educating individuals on self-awareness and boundaries, and personal responsibility to improve workplace well-being.
• The importance of communication, setting boundaries, and speaking up.

A huge takeaway in this episode is the emphasis on the the need for human connection and support in our every day lives. 

This is an incredibly inspiring episode and definitely one to get your ears around if you aspire to do something big in 2024!

About Brooke

Brooke stands as a trailblazer and keynote speaker, guiding Australians to develop resilience and confidence for pursuing ambitious goals. Positioned as a catalyst in the mental health domain, Brooke's upcoming runs across the country are poised to raise awareness, displaying her unwavering resilience in action. Additionally, through an online membership, Brooke empowers women, providing them with the essential tools to nurture confidence, resilience, and leadership skills applicable in both their professional environments and everyday lives.

Connect with Brooke

Website: https://www.brookeemmarose.com/

Membership: https://www.brookeemmarose.com/membership

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/brookemcintosh__/

Donate: https://www.mycause.com.au/p/301161/impact-to-ignite

LINKS

Blue Tree Project: https://www.bluetreeproject.com.au/

20Talk: https://20talk.com.au/

Your Joyful Host - Jemaine Finlay

Women's health naturopath, personal trainer, NLP & behaviour specialist, Heartmath coach, podcaster, speaker, sun-seaker, and world’s most curious human when it comes to consciousness & human behaviour. A bit of a mixed bag! But hey, at least you'll never be bored!

Connect with Jemaine
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/its.allwellness_podcast/
Website: https://jemainefinlay.com/

Transcript

JEMAINE : Today I'm joined by elite athlete and mental health advocate, Brooke McIntosh. Brooke is a leader and keynote speaker helping Australians build resilience and confidence to live and achieve big. And oh my God, she is a testament to this. Brooke is the beauty behind Impact to Ignite, a campaign to raise awareness to mental health in mining while raising funds for youth mental health organisations, 20Talk and Blue Tree Project. And guess how she did it? Brooke ran 1,600 kilometers in WA's frickin' hot Pilbara from Dampier to Perth. Insane, inspiring and life-changing to say the least. Today's episode is split into two conversations. Capturing Brooke the day before her muffler run and again when she's returned home. A totally new woman. Brooke is a game changer in the mental health space for Australians with programs for women in mining and construction and her online coaching portal, Sister in Your Pocket. Brooke is a new friend who I hold dear to my heart and I cannot wait for you to be inspired by this chick. And remember, if you love, love, love what you're getting your ears around, be sure to hit subscribe. Now let's dive in. Brooke, welcome. I'm so excited to be here. Oh, I am excited to have today's conversation. We're only days out from a journey of a lifetime for you, so I can't wait to dive in and hear what this is all about and the nuts and bolts and the vision behind it. You're about to set off on the run of a lifetime to raise awareness for mental health. So tell us what this is about.

BROOKE: So this run is exactly that. It's to raise awareness for mental health within our mining and construction industry and our younger generation because it is still such a taboo topic and it needs to not be. I have suffered from mental health when I was like 12 years old when my mum first entered the FIFO world. being at home without your mum around and your dad living in a different part of the world, it was just a real big shock to the system and that's where my anxiety and my depression kicked off. And then again, I hit rock bottom when I did enter the mining construction industry because I was not equipped with the tools and resources that I needed to succeed within that industry. I was alone, it was isolating, there was a lot of challenges on and off site. 

To me, this run is about creating an impact to ignite others to speak up and seek support of their own mental health because everyone is worthy. Everyone is worthy of a little bit of love. Everyone is worthy of help, but it is also a courageous act to put your hand up and say you're not okay. We take care of our physical health every single day. We make it a priority. We wash our bodies. But when it comes to our mental health, it's kind of like the last thing that we talk about or that we seek help and support around. And it's like, without your mental, you're kind of no good to anyone and you're in your mind every single second of the day. So we need to start making our mind a beautiful place to be. And that's what this run is about, is about empowering others to speak up and say that it's not weak to speak. We need to create those safe spaces for people to be able to speak about their mental health.

JEMAINE : That is beautiful and that is powerful Brooke. I am so grateful for you. You know, obviously it sucks that the reason behind this comes from your own challenges, but it is so beautiful to see someone turn their pain into purpose and really bring something back to the world that can really change the lives of so many. Tell us a little bit about the run, because this is 1600km. This is huge, girl. So give us a little bit of background. Where are you running to? Where are you running from?

BROOKE: So 1600km, people thought that I'm just going to run around in a circle over an oval, and I'm like, absolutely not. I need to make it an adventure and a journey. So I was like, what better way to start it? in Dampier, north of Western Australia, because Dampier is home to so many FIFO workers. And I had lived in Carartha for seven years of my life when I was working in those industries as well. And then I'm running all the way back down to Perth, because again, Perth is home to a lot of FIFO workers within the mining and construction industry. And this is my home base now as well. So it's like, Running from north of Western Australia all the way back down to bottom. We're taking apparently the scenic route, but there's not much of a scenic route. It's just highway. We're running down for 28 days and the target is to run 60 k's a day for 28 days straight and make it home safely.

JEMAINE : Oh my God. 60 k's a day. That is amazing. Now it's pretty rugged terrain up that way. Am I right?

BROOKE: Literally, it is and it's pretty bare as well. Like I've done the drive thousands of times and last time I did the drive was the start of this year. And as I was driving home, I was like, oh my God, I'm going to be running this in like six months time. So yeah, there's honestly not much to see up there. There is a lot of road trains that take that route. And to me, that's something a bit traumatic. It will be a massive fear and challenge to overcome. But I know just with my daily mantra of just one more, I'll be able to accomplish it too.

JEMAINE : Beautiful. Curious, what temperatures are we looking at? Because I know the north of WA can get pretty hot. Thankfully, this time of year, it is a touch cooler to what it can get to, but what kind of temperatures are we looking at?

BROOKE: So we're talking about now, probably about 30 degrees and then 25 to 30 degrees. Yeah, over nighttime, it does drop down to like 15, 16 degrees, but that's fine. I'll be rugged up in the caravan. But yeah, running in 30, 30-ish degrees at the moment. There was talk about pushing the run back, but I was just like, absolutely not. I'm not running in the summer. that is near impossible in the Pilbara. As you know firsthand, it gets to like 49 degrees up there during that time. So we've pushed it back as late as we can. So I'm like 30 degrees, that's all right. I'll just get a nice little sun kiss on the way down.

JEMAINE : Yeah, you'll come back nice and bronze. Now, for those who are tuning in, perhaps from the East Coast or perhaps around the world, just share with our audience, what is FIFO? What is the nature of this industry that we're talking about here?

BROOKE: By far, depending what way you look at it, there's so many different acronyms for this one, but the one that we're talking about today is fly in or fly out, where you pretty much fly to site, you work for one week, you might work for two weeks, three weeks, whatever your roster is, you work on site, you stay inside the camps, you go work 12 hour days, and then you fly home to your loved ones, to your home life. And the rosters vary from one week on, one week off, two weeks on, one week off, All last year though, I was doing four weeks on one week off. And that's where I suffered a lot from my own mental health because I was away from loved ones for so long. Four weeks is a long time and a long time to continuously be working 12 to 15 hour days. And when you're on site, you actually don't really get too much time for yourself. You get like an hour in the morning, an hour at night, and then it's bedtime, depending on how long you've worked throughout the days. Yes, there's gyms on site. And there is a bar, but that's pretty much it. So it can be isolating if you're not prepared for what you're walking into.

JEMAINE : So just to clarify, you're doing four weeks up on a site away from your friends and family, working 12 to 15 hour days, seven days a week for four weeks. Is that right? Yeah. Yeah. Wow. Wow. And so, I mean, I myself at the moment, I do fortnightly wellness visits up to mine sites up in the Pilbara, so I can resonate with where you're at right now. And I see a lot myself is that it's this either or culture where it's like, You know, that downtime, if you don't go to the gym, you drink, like there's not really anything else between, like there's no social activities, there's no ways to connect with community. And honestly, after a 12 to 15 hour day, you probably don't even want to do that. You want to have a call with your loved ones back home and go to bed, right?

BROOKE: Yeah. And it's like you finish work and exactly that's either, or you go to the gym or you go to the bar, or you just go back to your donger. So a donger is just like a C container, pretty much. and sit in your room and watch TV or something and doing that continuously without social interaction, social connection, meaningful connection, four weeks straight or a week straight, just continuously, you do see your mental health decrease.

JEMAINE : And so what do you think for people in that industry? I know there's a huge culture shift around speaking out around mental health and speaking up, but relating to that industry specific, like what do you think the barriers are or the challenges are that are holding people back from actually speaking up and saying, hey, I'm not okay?

BROOKE: It's definitely still the old mentality of toughen up, she'll be right, build a bridge. grab a slab of concrete. It is definitely still, there's a lot of people with the old mentality. And unfortunately, there's a lot of people in there who still take the mickey out of it when someone does come forward and say that they're not okay. Or even just smaller, not smaller things, everything is massive, but even just things about reading a pre-start newsletter that says something around mental health awareness, reading it and taking the mickey out of it. So that happened quite a few times when I was working on site and it takes a massive courageous act to speak up and call someone out on that stuff. But because I'm so deeply passionate about it, I'll do it. And that's what I did. And it wasn't until I did and I stood up for myself and I stood up for all the guys around me and said, hey, if you can't read it out, just don't read it out. But it's like. Little ics like that and little conversations like that, that can instill in our head that if I was to speak out, people are going to judge me. 

So just don't speak out, keep it shut down. And this is what I mean about creating the safe spaces. So on site, there is no safe spaces for people to come. The sites that I've worked at, the conversations that I've had, there's no safe spaces for people to come and not feel judged when they're talking about their mental health. It's just like, I'm not going to go to my project manager. I'm not going to go to my supervisor because some of them actually just don't even know what to do or how to have a conversation, how to hold space for a person as well. And every single morning last year when I was on site, I would always set an intention for myself to be able to get through the day and it would just lift my cup up as well, fill my cup up. And the intention always was to hold a conversation for someone. Whether that be a really empowering conversation, whether that be conversation about their family, or just to help them through a rough patch in their life. That was pretty much always my intention. And I would do that, but then it would also leave me feeling, I've got to do something more. This is just touching one person, like, how can I get further out there? And I guess this ties back into the run by me doing something so drastic like this, I hope. that the mining companies see that we need to create the safe spaces on site for people to come and speak up, speak openly about their mental health, because there's no right or wrong. And if you're feeling something, you need to feel it instead of just popping this shit pile back on. Otherwise that is just going to explode everywhere.

JEMAINE : And you know, there is that ripple effect, right? You might be able to suck it up and soldier on while you're on site, but then your loved ones and your family and your quality of life, when you do have that small week gap, when you do return home, becomes affected.

BROOKE: Yeah, 100%. It is affected and it is that ripple and effect like you just said, but the reality of it is that you're on site, whatever your roster is, one week, two weeks, whatever, you're on site, you're working a lot. And then you get home and then you're bombarded with the family, the loved ones, the friends, the catch-ups. the family dinners, mowing the lawns, the household chores, do this, do that, that the people who go away and work on site, they're never actually given a chance to collect themselves, create safety within themselves and their own nervous system, because it's just go, go, go, go, go as soon as you get home. 

Even though your home life should be for recovery and rest and recover, It's not because you feel like you've got to catch up on so much. I miss my son's birthday. I've got to go do this. I miss my best friend's birthday. We've got to go out that night. And it's just like you're playing catch up continuously. And what I'd love to see is that people understand that and that people start to realize that if I was to just give myself half a day or even a full day when I get home for my week off, that if I fill up my cup, I get to fill up everyone else's cups as well, instead of having that ripple effect. It's like, stop the snowball, look after yourself for half a day, a day, fill up your cup, and your mental health will increase, that way you can give back to everyone else too.

JEMAINE : And I do see that a lot up north. I do see that a lot of people come back to site and sometimes coming back to site is their R&R. They almost look forward to retreating back to site. While you're on site, you're living in the future, waiting to get home and then you get home and you're like, oh, I just want to go back to site and get my routine back, right?

BROOKE: Yeah, because it's like chaotic. You're one way, you're the other way. And then they come back to site because they've had a massive break because they've been on holidays or they've been running around after kids or doing all the family stuff which is amazing like we all need that don't get me wrong but then it's like they're exhausted so they come back to site to do it all over again and it's like when does it end it doesn't well unfortunately it does when their mental health is so down low and they feel like they've got no other option.

JEMAINE: I love that you're speaking about opening this conversation so that we can create safe spaces. And I know mine sites, often there's a chaplain and there's a EAP hotline that they can call for support. But I totally resonate in that that's not what we're speaking about here. What is creating safe spaces if you had your ideal world in making a true shift in mining? What does that look like?

BROOKE: It's just removing the stigma and making it a consistent daily practice to check in with ourselves. So what does an ideal for me look like? In the morning, we all have pre-starts on site. Yeah. Pre-starts. Do you take fives? Okay. Let's inject something else into the pre-start that says, what are you grateful for today? How are you feeling today? How did you wake up today? Are you feeling a little bit depressed? Are you feeling a little bit isolated? Are you feeling a little bit lonely? Okay, how can we help that? Oh, let's go play a team sport after work or let's have a chat with someone. and work on from that. And if we were to inject just a small little piece like that into our pre-starts, it would ripple out. So it doesn't mean, okay, let's go do massive workshops or we need to build a room to create a safe space. It doesn't mean that. It can just start small with injecting a little daily gratitude into our pre-starts. and a daily drop in with ourself. 

Because if we do that, and if we connect back to ourself every single day, again, we get to show up for others, but the main thing is, is that it's gonna eliminate a lot of errors and potential injuries, near death misses, and fatalities that happen in the industry. Because the fatalities that happen in the industry is because people's mind is not on the job. And you can slip up. So it's like if we take an extra two minutes to connect back to ourselves every single day, and it will just ripple out. But you can't leave that to the guys to do in their room. Because if you were to say, to do that in your room, people are just gonna be like, I'll skip it today, I'll skip it today. Make it compulsory, put it in the pre-start, do it as a collective, do it as a group. And when you do it as a group, you're getting that connection, the human connection as well, which we're human beings, we need connection.

JEMAINE: Yes, Brooke, I love everything about that. And from everything that you shared just then, a huge takeaway I'm hearing from that is personal responsibility, right? Like, yes, we need to, these pre-start initial create intention and awareness at the start of the day as a group is so important. But also we need to, we can't rely on people's circumstances and things outside of us to be the change, right? Especially when we're looking at the environment of mining where You know, the people that are managing that particular village or camp have, you know, up to 2000 people that they've got to kind of generalize their approach towards. So there is an element where it's like, okay, this morning, what am I grateful for? What is my intention for being here? How do I want my day to look? And how am I going to call in and raise my vibration to be that match? So that one, I can be resilient myself, but also I can kind of be that light throughout the day for those who also need it in those dark times.

BROOKE: Yeah. And I'm a big believer when you shine your light, you give permission for someone else to shine their light. And when others can shine their light, the world just becomes a more beautiful place.

JEMAINE: Absolutely. Now from personal experience myself up there in mining I can see sometimes there is this other barrier and you know you mentioned that you were up there for four weeks at a time. Do you think that potentially some people don't speak up because it's like well if I let someone know that I'm not okay and I get sent home from work that's four weeks worth of income that I lose and I can't sacrifice that because I've got bills, I've got mortgages, I've got a family. Are there barriers like that where it's like, cool, I'm happy to talk about how I feel, but I just can't take the consequence of what that procedure and that follow up looks like?

BROOKE: Yeah, so I honestly believe that if someone comes to you to tell you how they feel, it doesn't mean that they're not capable to work. It just means to hold a beautiful space for them to get their emotions out. And then it doesn't mean that you have to send them off site completely. And that's what we see, like someone opens up about their mental health, oh, you're not fit for work, go home. So they're going to go home, they're going to sit at their house and be like, what's wrong with me? I've got no income. And it just adds stress on stress on stress. So it's like if someone comes to you and says that they're not okay, okay, well, how can we support you in this? Because a lot of the time people don't come out and talk exactly because of that, because the money is playing in their head in the background. Well, if I don't go to work today, I can't afford my mortgage. I can't afford to send my kids to school. I can't afford food on the table. I can't afford any more time off. And financial stress is massive. And if you just keep adding stress on top of stress when someone else is feeling low,

JEMAINE: And Brooke, this is why I think it is really beautiful about the conversations that you're having in this space because it is about shifting the culture so that just feeling seen and heard, just having moments of gratitude, just coming back to the present moment where we're not anticipating the future and living ahead of time or on our break living in the past anticipating what we're going back to. Teaching people to be in the present moment, teaching people to shift a culture where we can help people feel at ease at work, that in itself, from everything that you're saying, is going to shift that person feeling so stagnant, feeling so internally conflicted, and allow them to stay in a place where financial issues aren't going to come into the conversation, they can continue their work, but continue at a place of ease rather than this dis-ease that drives a lot of the mental health we see.

BROOKE: Yeah, exactly that. And there is so much tick and flick out there that it's not a tick and flick anymore. I feel like a lot of people are getting lost in this new world that we're going into, technology, do this, numbers and everything, that they forget at the end of the day we're humans. And humans need connection. Humans need to be seen, felt, heard and validated. And when you're not getting that, it's just like you're just a fly on the wall, you're just another number. And no one's just another number. And I truly believe that mental health stems from not being seen. Because you feel so alone, you feel so isolated. And when you not feel seen, it's just like, you just want someone there to find you. You just want someone there to see you. So if someone can just hold that conversation and just listen, that's it. It can take a massive stress off us and a massive weight off our shoulder. So I always say now that when I was going through those darkest of days, I was lost, but I just wanted to be found.

JEMAINE: Yeah, that's beautiful. Thank you for sharing that. Now, Brooke, what was your role when you were in this industry?

BROOKE: What were you doing? So I started out as a trade assistant and I worked inside the workshops and I absolutely loved that, like hands-on working. I worked on the locomotives for Rio. I just felt like a badass. I was like, I fix the trains, service the trains. It's so cool. And then I moved into truck driving. So then I become a truck driver and moxie operator as well in the construction industry. And again, I absolutely loved it.

JEMAINE: Yeah. Now I can imagine the nature of the role that you're in. I could imagine it would be a very male dominant industry. Am I right? Yeah. And so how did you find being a woman in that particular role in an area that's isolated and a male dominant industry and potentially community when you go back to that village after work? How did you find that personally?

BROOKE: Like we're talking about all the challenges here now, and it's like, Not just stereotype or anything, but when you're female, there presents so many more challenges because you don't want to say the wrong thing. You don't want to come across as flirty. You don't want to let someone get the wrong intention of you. It's like you're there and you have to continuously prove yourself. You're there and you have to continuously be like, no, that is not who I am. This is who I am. Like there would be some nights where I just wanted to hang out with the guys and just have a conversation or just be around friends because the FIFO family, like it does become your family. And there was times where I just want to be around family. I just want to be around that connection. But then I wouldn't put myself in those situations because I didn't want people to take me the wrong way or I didn't want to be seen at the bar because there is a lot of stigma around that as well. So then I'll just go to the gym, like I love the gym, don't get me wrong, but I'll just go to the gym where I actually want a connection. And connection doesn't mean physical, it just means conversations as well. So then I'll just go to the gym and then I'll just go back to my room and I'm like, what is this? So it presents a lot of different challenges. And then I firsthand have experienced sexual assault on site. And that was where I hit my lowest point. But thankfully, I had the confidence to stand up for myself, which a lot of females don't. They just shy away and they just push it down. Whereas when you have the confidence and you call out that BS because you know it's not appropriate, that's where you stand up for yourself and you show yourself the utmost self-love as well. So there is many, many, many, many challenges.

JEMAINE: I can imagine. And did you find at that time where you had gone through that experience, was there support on site? Do you felt it was managed appropriately while you were there?

BROOKE: Yeah. No, unfortunately not. But again, I'm a big believer in you don't know what you don't know. These people don't know how to handle situations like that. Some leaders in the industry, they don't know how to handle situations like that. So it's not a rip at them. It's just there's no training for it out there. People aren't equipped with the tools and resources to have these conversations, to know what boundaries are. Like, we're so quick and easy to put in above the line and below the line behaviors. But what actually is that? Like, what does it look like? And I think the more behaviors and the more structure that we're trying to put in, the more this, the more that, the more don't say this, don't say that. While yes, it's like to protect everyone, it's actually doing a detriment to the industry too. Because males don't feel confident, they don't feel comfortable to come have a conversation to females because they don't know if it's gonna be taken the wrong way, what she can do, is it gonna be turned back on them at any moment of time? And I know this firsthand because I've had these conversations with the guys. So then they just don't talk to them. So then the female is excluded. And it's just that ripple effect.

And it's like, okay, so how do we create these safe spaces? We actually got to educate people with the tools and resources to know themselves, know their values, know what they will and will not tolerate, and know and have the confidence to speak up even if their voice shakes. Because you could be in a situation and the guys are talking about what they did on the weekend or sex with their partners or boys banter, whatever. And if you don't feel comfortable, if being a female, you don't feel comfortable about that, you have every right to say, Hey dudes, can you not chat about that when I'm around? Because it's making me feel uncomfortable, but yet we don't. And then that's when it just continues down the spiral. Negative stuff happens. Guys thinks it's okay below the Line behavior starts kicking in and then people lose their jobs, sexual assaults happen because people misread what's actually happening and how that person is actually feeling inside because we never had the confidence to speak up.

JEMAINE: Gosh, you touched on so many incredibly important points in just that, Brooke. I too have seen it myself in that there was a gentleman on our site who had come over from another company and he couldn't make eye contact with a woman and he had even said to me, look, I'm just going to refer to you as mate or bud because I need it to be known around that that's what the relationship is. And he found it really challenging coming to our site because where I was working is a very welcoming and beautiful culture and community. And everyone checks in, what'd you get up to on your break? How was your R&R? What are you getting up to? Blah, blah, blah. However, this gentleman had come from a site where there was a lot around that sexual assault space.

And so obviously with that systems in place, and like you say, it becomes really rigid and generalized in the approach of how a company manages these particular complaints and situations. He had learned that I can't have female friendships on site because I'm going to be flagged. I can't ask women how their break was or what they're up to on their break because that could be taken as a threat. And so he came to our site and then all of a sudden he had this people looking at him saying, you know, like, what's wrong with this guy? He's so rude. He's this, he's that. And it's like, you know, he's being conditioned that way out of fear from what systems have created. So I'm so grateful that you share that valid point, because no, it's not okay to have these behaviors and, you know, appreciate that women are coming into an uncomfortable environment where, you know, there are things that they don't want to see or hear or be exposed to. But also, boys need to be boys and have their boy time and their chat and their banter and, where do we draw the line in that? And yet again, drawing back to everything that you keep illuminating is there is that personal responsibility because different groups, different people, you're going to feel comfortable in certain conversations and uncomfortable in others. And sometimes it can be the same conversation with a different person and it's going to change that level of trust and comfort. And so we need to take that personal agency and speak up in those moments where we don't feel comfortable.

BROOKE: 100%, and it goes both ways, right? It goes for males and females. Like, yes, I'm just using females as an example here, but the three things that I always say every single day when I was on site was, if you wouldn't say it to your mother, if you wouldn't say it to your wife, and if you wouldn't say it to your daughter, don't say it to me. I don't want to hear about it. Yeah, it's just so sweet. And it goes, but honestly, it goes back the other way too. If you wouldn't say it to your father, wouldn't say it to your brother, wouldn't say it to your son, don't say it to the boys. Because there is females who thrive off that shit. There is females who egg it on and then they flip the switch and that's not okay. That's my biggest pet peeve is that kind of stuff as well. But yeah.

JEMAINE: Brooke, we can go so deep and I am so respectful of your time and I do want to raise awareness that we are actually going to do a half a podcast today and we're going to let you do your run and then come back because I want to hear how that journey went and the challenges and the ups and downs. But before we do jump off, Let's zoom back into this run again. So we are raising awareness for mental health. As we can see so far, there is so much power and conversation around what it is that you're doing and the challenge that you're stepping into. Who are you raising funds for? What do you hope to achieve with this run? Who can we give a huge shout out to as well that who is behind you, the team that's creating this athlete and supporting this athlete? Yeah, give us all the nitty gritty on that side.

BROOKE: I got goosebumps because I'm actually now just finally starting to feel it in my bones that I am a fucking athlete. Like I've come this far and what I'm about to do is like top, top performance athlete stuff. And I feel generally so ready and supported, but it wouldn't be possible if I never put my hand up for that little bit of help that I needed to get me over the line. And there is so many people to thank, like from Dr. Nick, like my chiro, my nutritionist, my strength coach, Jono, my running coach, Isabel. But for this run specifically, we're raising funds for 20Talk and the Blue Tree Project. 

The Blue Tree Project has helped me through my darkest of days. And whenever I see a blue tree, it just kind of like instantly gives you a gives you hope just to keep going. And just one more. And especially when I was on site, there's so many more blue trees coming around. And we talk about, you're talking about before turning your pain into your purpose. And this is what I truly believe Kendall has done. She lost her brother to suicide, but before he went, they painted a blue tree in their mom's backyard, just as a practical joke, just as a prank. And now it's a movement that's taken across Australia. And whenever I talk about it, I just get so many goosebumps. 

And the other charity is 20Talk. 20Talk is an upcoming youth charity, and they're making mental health cool, pretty much. They're putting out amazing content on social media that talks about all different mental health issues, what people suffer from, and having these conversations. But they're also educating our youth around it all as well with the tools and resources. So, those are my two chosen charities and the massive goal is to raise $500,000 for them, so it will go 50-50. Why? Because I love them both so much and they're doing epic things for Australia. So, it's a 1600K run, yes, that's the massive event and that's just what I got to do now, but it's the funds that is coming along with it to donate to these charities that will make everything happen and possible.

JEMAINE: And that is powerful. And if you are in Australia, keep your eyes out for those blue trees. Hainted blue, a huge symbolism behind that. If you are not from Australia and you're down this neck of the woods on a holiday, grab a photo, put it up on social medias with a tag and tag blue tree because It is a powerful movement that is, you know, as Brooke has just shared here, this is an organization that has got her through those dark times. And for somebody who has been in that position, seeing those blue trees, it causes a shift. It causes an internal shift, which this is, again, contributing to changing that stigma and allowing people to have that confidence within themselves.

BROOKE: Yeah, it's like the blue trees just pop up randomly as well. And I was like having a real off day and I'm just like, oh my God, just get me home. And then all of a sudden I was like, blue tree, just instant smile, instant shift in energy. It was crazy.

JEMAINE: Now, Brooke, I have two more questions for you. One, what do you think is going to be the biggest internal challenge? We know, obviously, there are a lot of physical challenges that are going to come with running 1,600 kilometers and 30-degree heat in the middle of nowhere. What are you anticipating to be the deeper-rooted challenges that might come along this journey?

BROOKE: It's physical, it's internal, but it's definitely the trucks. Because in actually in August last year, I was coming off the highway or sorry, going to take an exit turn on the highway and I missed my turn and I smashed into a bullet going 100 k's an hour. Concrete bollard going 100 k's an hour and then a massive triple semi-trailer come and clean me up going 100 k's an hour too, so. Oh my god. That is like a massive piece in me that I have not worked through yet, but knowing I'm doing this run and on the highway there is going to be so many triples coming at me left, right and centre. That is going to be my biggest internal struggle, just to ground myself knowing that I am safe, I can jump out of the way, I'm not going to die. That would be my biggest battle to be battling with. And I can't change that. I'm just going to have to work through it.

JEMAINE: You are facing your fears. I think there is a huge symbolism to that. Something that I think a lot of people can take as a little bit of subtle advice, you know, step into your fear. Otherwise we let that, that trauma, that pain becomes suffering and it becomes an internalized barrier. You know, those, those things that subtly trigger us through certain moments of life and when we can face them head on and say, you know what, I'm not fucking scared of this. I'm not going to let you hold me back anymore. I think that's so potent, so powerful, Brooke. Good on you. Now, final question. When I first was introduced to your name, the girls who shared this with me from CoCreate, they were like, oh, you need to check out Brooke. She is doing this incredible run. I feel like you're just going to jam with her. She is so your vibe. And then Emily had said to me, the distance that you were running every single day and your training routine. Can you just give me a little bit of insight as to what this training routine has been? Just so our audience knows, this isn't just a few days of intensity for you when you hit the race and cross that finish line. This has been months of grueling training. You've ran this race again and again and again.

BROOKE: Oh, massively. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So my training for this started nine months ago, pretty much. But prior to the nine months, I'd never ran over 10Ks before. So to get to where I am today, to running 55Ks, backing it up with 45Ks the next day, then 40Ks is insane. But training, and like just in the nine month period, but training has been… 40 hours a week continuously with like three recovery sessions, massages, like probably about 30 hours of running a week, three strength sessions a week, continuously eating. Oh my God, my family used to take Nikki out and be like, girl, you always eat. And now they're like, whoa, you are just eating way, like so much more because you have to sustain yourself, right? And this is the coolest thing about this run, what it's done for me, is that when I was younger, I used to run. But then I got told to stop running because my health was going down and I lost my period. I actually lost my period for eight years. Through this run and through this training, through, I'm training for like 40 hours a week, right? But through getting my nutrition right and eating a lot more, I've actually brought my period back too. So I've had a consistent period every month for six months now. And that to me is what a female health is.

JEMAINE: Yes, yes. And you know, women's health naturopath is my background. I stand with that because I worked with so many women who their period went MIA because they were under eating or they went keto or they were overtraining or they were stressed. So incredibly valid point. It is actually one of our vital signs. It's not often spoke about. We talk about blood pressure and and all of these different elements that we go to the GP for a general checkup. But for a woman, her menstrual cycle is a vital sign. So thank you for bringing that to this conversation because that is powerful, ladies. Make sure you are using that as your report card.

BROOKE: So just those to show that you can train so much. and eat so much and you can still stay healthy, like you can become healthier as well. Instead of overtraining and under eating, it's like, girls, we need to eat to fuel our bodies, like eat.

JEMAINE: Yes, thank you for bringing that powerful message there, Brooke. Now, we're going to share throughout this video when we do go live a little bit of your journey along the way and then we're going to circle back around and just see how that round went, what your challenges were, what you conquered, what you defeated, and how much money you raised. So we're going to leave it here for now. I thank you so much for your time this morning, Brooke. Thank you.

BROOKE: It's been an awesome conversation and I can't wait just to go out and do it and then circle back around and tell you everything.

JEMAINE: Oh, well, we're cheerleading you on. I'm going to be watching behind the scenes and cheering you on all the way. So we wish you all the best and we'll see you on the flip side. We are back on the back end of Brooke's 1600 kilometre run. Brooke, how are you?

BROOKE: Hello, I'm so good. So excited to be back here telling you all about the run and how we're going now.

JEMAINE: Yeah, I am excited for this conversation because, I mean, we've briefly had a chat since you've been back and I just I felt like I was in the presence of a whole new woman. I feel like there's just been like just some up leveling on that that huge month. So I'm really excited to share with our audience the evolution within yourself personally and the challenges and everything that you met along the way.

BROOKE: Yeah, 100%. I honestly do feel like a whole new person. I knew coming out of this run, a lot of things would change, but I never expected for so much to change, I guess. And for me internally to change so much in a short period of time, and now it's all reflecting everything that I've ever wanted and to become as well. So.

JEMAINE: So, tell us about the run. I know before you left, we spoke about some challenges, the trucks being a bit of a trauma fear for one, leaving the family at a really sentimental time was another, and then obviously the expected physical challenges of the run, but tell us about the run and perhaps anything that wasn't expected that popped up along the way.

BROOKE: The run, honestly, I miss it so much and I've honestly been finding it so hard to integrate back into civilization. It has become like a massive process for me and I'm just taking every day as it comes really. But the run itself, I was honestly so happy out there. I was my happiest self. It was so simple. Wake up every morning, do my morning routine, get on the road and just run. It was the definition of simplifying all areas of life. And that was the key theme of the run for me. And my biggest learning curve that I took away from it was just simplicity in life and in business too. 

So the run itself, like, honestly, hand on heart, I could say that I was my most happiest out there every single day, no matter what challenge I faced. There was, I was always able to adapt and continue on. Like, yes, a lot of challenges popped up. The trucks, I thought were going to be my biggest fear. Come day three, I was making friends with all the truckies out there and they become my biggest supporter while out on the road. And the conversations that were had with the truckies, the support that was shown by the truckies and also by all the communities that I ran through and on social media platforms as well, the support. during the run was just insane. I was so grateful for it. I come up against food poisoning as well, so I had food poisoning for one of the days, and that was just a slog to get it done, but we still managed to get 40Ks out that day. 

The weather, so I'd been training the whole time down in Perth, and it was through Perth's winter, my training session. So to go up to Karratha and for the first two weeks of the run, it was like anywhere from 37 degrees all the way up to 42 degrees that I was having to run every single day. Yeah, the heat definitely got to me a little bit there, but we still powered on through. So to run from extreme heat, and then as we're making our way down the coast, to then get to Durian Bay, and then hit with a severe weather storm and have to run through and combat all the winds, the rain, the hail even, it was just a journey that I'll never ever forget. It was really cool out there, to be honest. I never had any doubts in any of the days, and every single day I just woke up with a huge smile on my face.

JEMAINE: That is a huge testament to you, because in part one of our recording you had even said you were expecting about 30 degree heat. I followed your journey via social media and I remember it was day one and you were like, what the hell, it is like 42 degrees up here, it was a huge Shocks. I mean, for someone who was facing blisters on day two, crazy heat that you weren't expecting, and this was in the first couple of days, it still just blew my mind that every single day you're like, alrighty fam, you just had this energy from the moment you woke up. Honestly, it's a challenge what you did, but mentally, emotionally, to be able to still get up and push through, but bring an energy to that, I just, it's so admirable.

BROOKE: Yeah. And to me, it just shows the biggest landing lesson for me out of this whole run was just if you were chasing your own dreams in life, you would do literally whatever it takes to make sure that dream comes true. And every single day I showed up rain, hail, shine, heat waves, food poisoning, whatever, because that was my dream in life to run 1600Ks to raise awareness for mental health and create that impact to ignite. That's my dream in life. I'm not out there chasing validation from anyone else. I'm not out there chasing anything else. Just my own pure dream in life and the fact that it was, I just did whatever it took and I brought the energy along with it because every single day I was living in purpose. Every single day I was so happy doing it. No matter if I had blisters, no matter if my quad was hanging off its muscle, no matter the injuries that popped up on the run. It just meant so much to me to be chasing my own dream and creating that impact to Ignite, so we got it done.

JEMAINE: And then you did, you know, I was checking out the comments each day and there were people from New Zealand, there were people from all around the world like, we're following you Brooke, we see you. What would you say would be the biggest heartfelt moment? Like I know you mentioned the truckies were tuning in over the radio cheering you on and people were pulling over and honking their horns. Was there one specific memory where you just thought like, I have to keep going because of this, like it was just something that just really touched your heart.

BROOKE: Yeah. Honestly, it was like reflecting now, it was like every single day, there was always one of those moments. It's like the universe gives you what you need at the exact moment and it was in the moments when I was in the complete trenches that someone or something would pop up to remind me of my why and to remind me why I've got to keep going. 

So I just remember distinctly running up this hill and it was like 42 degrees that day and I was only like 16 k's down and I was like what am I even doing and I was just like going through all these emotions and so much was coming up for me that I was working through and I was just like just in the trenches of it all and then next minute this truckie comes up over this hill and it's just like good job girl just keep going just one more and i just burst into tears because i'm like this is what it's all about i'm doing it for these guys i'm doing it for the wider community so it was in the moment when i was in the trenches that something like that would pop up but when i was running through northampton this is like the community aspect when i was running through northampton i was just going and i just seen this sign and some lady, she had created this big sign for me that just said, just one more. And it had like all glitter and diamantes all over it. I've still got it on my bedside table now. And then on the back of it, it was like title, resilience. and then meaning 1600 Ks to raise awareness of mental health. But she literally had been following my journey since day one and just wrote everything on the back of this card for me and stuck it on a signpost for me to see when I ran through. And it was just little random acts of kindness like that that just kept me going for the whole time. And it just goes to show that for me, like you're never too small to create that impact. a small random act of kindness does go a long way and that's what kept me going through those days.

JEMAINE: Oh, that literally just filled my body with little shivers then. I think this, we touched on it, I think, on the Instagram live when we caught up. This run that you did, it's so symbolic of what you're running for. I mean, you're running to raise awareness for mental health in mining. And, you know, you're out there in the middle of the heat, in the middle of nowhere, you're away from your family, you're missing out on significant family events. And one thing that we spoke about in part one of this interview, when I asked what what the change is that you would like to see and it was just I guess that mateship like checking in on people finding those moments of gratitude like if we could come together at pre-start in mining and and have collective moments of gratitude and raising our hand when we're going through those struggles. And I just think your run has so mirrored that. It showed the importance of community. It showed the importance of those random acts of kindness when you are out on the mine site or when you are out in the thick of it, because you have no idea what somebody is internally going through. And sometimes that small act can save someone's life.

BROOKE: Yeah. Yeah. And one thing that I realized out there, so I went through, there was actually so many days that I did this, but every day I would like wake up, do my whole alrighty fam spill and stuff. But when I was actually out on the road myself, I would always just give the, you know, good old Aussie wave. And I realized that the good old Aussie wave really is not there anymore. But when I was giving it, I received like maybe 30% of my waves that I gave, I received 30% back. But it was in those moments that I was like, honestly, something so small, just like a wave or just like a how you're going, can help someone feel seen in life. And when we're working out on site, it's so easy to lose ourselves. It is so easy to lose sight of your vision, of your why. And by having these conversations, by asking someone how they're going, by actually really checking in with a mate, you can help them just feel seen and you can help them feel supported and like they're not alone because on site it is it can become so isolating and when we keep going on the everyday merry-go-round of like just like just keep moving like wake up go to work on your forever roller coaster It is so easy just to lose sight of it all. So I'm a big believer of just connecting back to ourselves, connecting with a mate and literally just taking a minute or two minutes out of your day just to check in with yourself and then with someone else to help them feel seen, heard and supported in all.

JEMAINE: So important. And one thing that came to mind as you were saying about patterns I've seen over the last couple of weeks is that when you notice somebody either in your department or on your site, they may not be a mate, but you work with them day in, day out for, like you said, sometimes 12 hours a day over four weeks. So you get to know somebody's kind of, I guess, place of norm. And so if you notice someone is showing up and they may be a little bit different, they may be a little bit more withdrawn or quieter. Just because you don't have a day-to-day conversation with this person or you don't have a friendship, even if you've never had a conversation, if you know something seems different, just asking the question. They're probably going to say, no, you know what, I'm okay, I'm fine. But like you said, in that moment, someone asked and they felt seen. And then if something doesn't you know, is simmering under the surface, it gives them that opportunity to think, someone has noticed this, maybe I can go to them and have a conversation, or maybe it is noticeable, and I can seek help. So I think that's really powerful in just that statement alone, like that wave, just allowing someone to feel seen makes a huge impact in someone's life.

BROOKE: Yeah, and you may not like it may to you, it may not feel like something now, But to that other person, it could be absolutely every single thing that they needed in that time. You may not know that right now, but they might reflect back later that night or a week later and be like, wow, she actually seen me or like, that's really cool that that stranger cared and offered to give help or just have a conversation. And we're so caught up in our heads all the time, like, what happens if I say this? Or like, should I say this? And I'm like, if you've got something to say, just say it. Because it could be a matter of life or death in their eyes.

JEMAINE: And at the end of the day, if it's coming from a place of positive intention, then I don't think you can do wrong. It's up to the other person how they interpret it. But I think if you're coming from a genuine place of care, I think that that voice, those words need to have a voice. So I totally agree with you there. Now, Brooke, I know that you were sharing a caravan with a guy mate over the whole journey. So again, it draws on that whole mining aspect of confined spaces and, you know, working in isolation with people day in and day out. I know Rowan is obviously a good friend of yours to be able to be honoured with that gift of coming on that trip, but what were the challenges in that off-road part of the journey?

BROOKE: Yeah, there was definitely challenges, but this is where I learned to speak my voice even further, and communicate my needs 100%. Because there was times where like, so every single morning, you'd wake up and Rowan's the first person that I see, absolutely loved having him on board as well. But we also need our space too. So if I never communicated what I need, back off, I just need a little bit of space. Now, it wouldn't have happened and it would have made the journey a hell of a lot more less, like it would have just made it a lot more harder. So therefore I really needed to step into my voice and actually speak what I needed and communicate clear boundaries, which we do have. And our communication has been good since the very start of our friendship. But in my most vulnerable moments, it was just like communication was key as well. So that's where I really learned to just step in and voice what you need because no one knows what you need in life if you're not going to voice it. No one's a mind reader. And if someone doesn't know that they've crossed your boundary, they don't know that if you don't actually voice it. So it gave me a lot more confidence to be like, no, that's not okay. Or no, I need my space now. Let me be for five or whatever the situation was. It just gave me a bigger voice.

JEMAINE: And I think this is really important advice for everyone, no matter what situation you're in. I find it's come up again recently in the relationship conversation space. And, you know, often we don't voice our need for space and often we don't voice it because we don't want to offend the other person. But it ends up doing more harm when we stew on it, we stew on it, and it's like that pot of hot water and the lid's on and it's simmering, simmering, simmering, and then the lid explodes. And from you trying not to offend the other person, it ends up being really explosive and reactive and way worse than just having that initial voice. So I think there's a really good message in that for a relationship space, for friendships, for partnerships, intimate relationships, and the whole works.

BROOKE: Yeah, absolutely. I'm a big believer in when you start voicing your voice and your needs and your wants, you're actually giving the other dude, female, whatever, the other person, an opportunity to be better as well. An opportunity for an easier friendship. They're not a mind reader at the end of the day. So therefore, if you start voicing and start communicating better, your friendship is going to grow. And there's going to be so much more that comes out of it as well, because no one's a mind reader. And if you don't, you are going to find yourself in sticky situations that you don't actually want to be in, all because you never had the confidence to speak your voice at the start.

JEMAINE: And, you know, nothing has meaning except the meaning that we give to it. And I am a big believer that everything in life is purely perception. There is no truth because we all have our individual truth. And I think having that clear and open communication, which yes, expressing your needs and your boundaries, but also being receptive to receive the other person's perspective of the situation as well. I just think communication in itself is something that can create so much more internal harmony. I think a lot of us are walking around with this internal conflict just purely for that, not being able to adequately communicate and feeling unseen, like you said, or feeling like people are walking all over their own personal boundaries as well. So, really valuable point. Now, you did mention on the run something about the quad muscle hanging off, and this is something that I've been really curious to know how your body has pulled up post-run. You mentioned it's been nine months of training in the lead-up to the run. I think it was 40 hours a week, which is a full-time job just in your training. for nine months in the lead up and then obviously 40 to 60 Ks a day over a month of pure running. How is your body on the back end of that? Tell us a bit about the recovery for that.

BROOKE: The recovery has been really good. Like I said at the start of this one, the hardest and the most challenging aspect of post-run is coming back into civilization, because everything is just so in your face. Everything is just hectic. Our world nowadays is just hectic. So it's been a really good reminder for myself just to simplify everything, take time out for me to connect back to myself, to ground. So mentally, it's been challenging. physically, my body's all good. Like, two weeks later, I went and ran a marathon. Because my body just got so good. And going back to the quad hanging off the bone. That's literally what it felt like. It was a good two or three days. It was like that. And then on the third day, I literally just had to take my own advice. And because I'm a mindset coach as well, I just had to shift my perspective on everything. The moment that I shifted my perspective instead of, oh, my God, this is an injury. My quads really sore. The moment I shifted my perspective to my quad is gaining strength for what's to come. And what was to come was more hills and everything. But the moment that I shifted that perspective, it was like I felt so much more stronger and in tune with my body because to get stronger, you have to go through that uncomfortable pain. And that's exactly what I did, shifted my perspective to be like, it's not getting weaker, it's getting stronger to what's to come. And my quad the next day was just like so much better for all the hills and the wind that was to come. But other than that, like, The feet, yeah, the blisters on the feet, they're all good. Let's just say I'm never going to be a foot model because my toenails are just like, yeah, not ideal. But I'm fine and it's out of this run, I've just realized how much I love running and I love running for the pure enjoyment and my own mental health too.

JEMAINE: A hundred percent. And so bringing it back to mental health, we were raising funds for 20Talk and the Blue Tree Project. What was the final figure?

BROOKE: So we hit $73,000, which I'm stoked with. For one person to hit $73,000 to raise awareness for mental health is a massive achievement. So yeah, I'm absolutely stoked with where we got to.

JEMAINE: Oh, a hundred percent. Congratulations. That is amazing, Brooke. You should be so proud. And it just goes to show these things can't happen if it isn't for community, if it isn't for coming together, right? I mean, you could have put yourself through hell and back. And if it's not for the people waving and the support behind you and, and the purpose, the reason why, and the funds coming in to validate and back all of that, you know, none of this could have, could have happened if it wasn't for that, that wider community. And I guess that big vision behind your run.

BROOKE: 100% and the fact that we did it in such a short amount of time frame as well, like raise that much money, one person in like maybe a two, three month time frame. I'm just like, whoa, like I'm already excited for the next one.

JEMAINE: Yeah now understandably by the time this episode is live the GoFundMe page would have closed down but Brooke was raising funds for 20Talk and the Blue Street Project so I would highly recommend if you can't get behind Brooke specifically on this run I know I have heard through the pipeline that she will be running again in the future but in this case check out these two beautiful organizations and if they feel in alignment you can still support Brooke's cause by donating directly to the Blue Tree Project or 20Talk. Both incredible organizations here in Australia doing great things for mental health.

BROOKE: 100% it's never going to end this. I feel like this is just the beginning for me. And I'm super excited to see what's to come because now that I know that this is like my full heart led dream in life, anything's possible.

JEMAINE: A hundred percent. And you are such a testament to that. So Brooke, tell us, what are your plans for 2024? Like, what are you going to be doing in this space of fitness or in the space of mental health or in your own personal brand?

BROOKE: Yeah, so I'm definitely going to keep running. If you say next year, we've got… The goal running wise is just to get around to every state in Australia and run a marathon and then continue my own training for I've got something epic planned for 2025. I don't want to speak too much into that just yet, but definitely still running, still training hard out, still raising awareness for mental health and focusing on my own personal brand. So that's with site visits, that's with keynote speaking, guest speaking, and also my online membership to help females build confidence, resilience and leadership. within their workplaces and everyday life as well. So they're the two main things that I'm going to be focusing on, which I'm really excited for 2024.

JEMAINE: I'm excited for you. And you know, if I want a coach on my side, I would be wanting you in every corner, I mean, you're an athlete, you've just brought forward so many life lessons. And Brooke, if you don't mind me asking, how old are you? Oh, you are so youthful and you have done so much and I can see that this is going to be a huge future for you. And yeah, if I would want anyone to be in my corner, if I was going to do a run or if I was just struggling with confidence or like you said, leadership or even in the workspace, I would be signing up to your cause, baby. Because I just feel like for someone at 27 years old, you have a head on you, like someone who has been a keynote speaker for decades. You've just, you know, you're really quite powerful in everything that you stand for. So I stand with you on that. So much. So Brooke, obviously mental health being a big key here, mental health in mining. If you could get it to the ears of all of the people out in mine sites right now, what is one key message you would like to leave for them?

BROOKE: I say this through and through, it's just the power of just one more. Like, with the power of just one more, you can accomplish anything in life. You can also make it through your darkest of days as well. If you hold on for just one more day, if you hold on for just one more step, just one more breath, brighter days will come. And there is so much out there if you just hold on for just one more. And even putting your hand out for just a little bit. of extra support, it is always out there for you as well because I truly believe that everyone is worthy of this life. Everyone is love and everyone is lovable. You may be going through a dark experience right now, but it just does not mean that you have a dark life to reflect and remember all the good times, all the gratitude moments in your life and to hold on for just one more because anything's possible.

JEMAINE: And I love that life is cyclical. If we actually zoom out, we see that challenges come and then we overcome them and then they come again. And I think when we can look at it as cyclical, like if we're looking at our life in this current moment and when we are in the thick of the shit, it can feel like, holy crap, is this my life? Like it's a really dark place. This just feels like there's no hope. But when we zoom out and think, no, this is a season, this isn't my life. If it's my life, this obviously feels heavy and overwhelming. But if it's a season, just like I'm in winter right now, spring will soon follow and so will summer. And then, of course, winter's going to roll around again. And we see that in the economy, we see that in our own personal life and triumphs and failures. And so, when we can come back to that seasonality, and like you said, use the power of the mind, just like you did when your muscle was in incredible pain. And this is exactly what this podcast is, right? 

I've got a background in natural medicine and all of these different modalities where we would typically prescribe something. And the vision for this podcast is teaching the power of the mind because we know that depression, anxiety, fear, stress, if we think about the past or anticipate the future, Our physical body in this present moment is responding. Our heart rate picks up, we feel sweaty, we feel clammy. And so, as you said, if we can reflect on moments of gratitude or those moments of joy or fun or happiness or peace in our past, just like when we're thinking about a future that hasn't yet and may not even happen, the body's going to respond to those thoughts. So being in the winter season, not just this positive wee-wee stuff, but quite literally changing your physiology by finding moments of gratitude can be so, so powerful to get you through the winter until spring comes around again.

BROOKE: 100%. And life can't always be a high, but whenever life drops below anything a high, people are so quick to be like, I've got a bad life. I've had a bad month. I've had a bad this. And it's like, hang on a second. Take five minutes out. Reflect on all the gratitude moments and all the happy moments and the joyful moments that you've experienced in the last six months. I'm pretty sure they can outweigh what you are currently experiencing today. So never forget those moments.

JEMAINE: Amen, sister. And one question that I leave everyone with before wrapping up the show, if you could ask our audience one question to reflect on, I know reflection has been a big part of your journey post run. If you could leave one reflective question for all of our audience that may be the difference that makes the difference in their life, what would you ask?

BROOKE: What would I ask? I think this is a theme in life at the moment is what can you do today that can propel you ahead for tomorrow? How can you improve 1% today that will add up to 365 in a year's time?

JEMAINE: That compound effect, right? Yeah. I love that. Well Brooke, it's been an honour to watch you on this journey and it's been so beautiful to see your own personal evolution. It's been incredibly inspiring and I only hope to just continue watching and see where this next year, the next few years take you and get behind you on your next run. So I'll include all of your links in the show notes below so people can find you and get behind you and see everything that you're doing.

BROOKE: Thank you so much. Thank you so much for all the support Jermaine and having me on, helping me spread the awareness for this run for mental health and what it is that I'm doing. So thank you so much. I'm excited to continue on in 2004. So thank you.

JEMAINE: Thanks for listening. I hope today's episode inspired you in your journey towards wellness. And if you enjoyed the episode, please share it with a friend because it'll help you truly understand the information that you've taken in today. And of course, it'll plant the seed for wellness in the life of someone you love. I'd love if you could leave me a review over at Apple Podcasts and let me know what you learned over at social media at It's All Wellness. 

I really love hearing the feedback from you as it helps me to continue to make the show better. And if you want more inspiration from our incredible guests and content to learn how to improve the quality of your life, then make sure you sign up for the Wellness Newsletter and get it delivered right to your inbox over at jermainefillet.com. And if no one has told you today, I want to remind you that you are so loved, you are so worthy and you matter. Now it's time to go out there and be the best person you can be. Until next time, remember, it's all wellness.