“My biggest fear was being isolated. I was having to give up my work. None of my friends had kids. I didn't think that our friendships would be the same after I had a kid.”

Adelaide moved away from her friends and family to regional Victoria just before she fell pregnant with her first child.

When her mental health took a turn, she found the services in her new hometown weren’t exactly able to handle her case. Then when she did find specialists, they didn’t stick around for long.

While Adelaide quickly exhausted her options for local mental health support, luckily those fears about her friendships falling through were unfounded. Her support network her get through it all from afar, but there were plenty of challenges along the way.

You’ll hear Adelaide’s story, and learn from Dr Rochelle Hine, a social worker and mental health professional, about how you can overcome some of the challenges of parenting outside the city.

Survive and Thrive is a PANDA podcast, produced by Deadset Studios

Visit panda.org.au for more support.

Family violence support:

It’s important to know that there is a risk during this time in your life that family violence will get worse, or it may start for the first time. If you’re worried about safety in your relationship, support is available.

1800 RESPECT (support for people affected by family violence): 1800 737 732 or 1800respect.org.au (24/7)

Speak to PANDA:

Call the PANDA Helpline on 1300 726 306 (9am-7:30pm Monday-Friday and 9am-4pm Saturdays AEST).

The Helpline provides a safe and confidential space for any new or expecting parent struggling with the challenges of becoming a new parent.

Our highly trained and caring counsellors can help you work through your challenges by talking openly and honestly about your thoughts, feelings and experiences.

Partners, family members and friends can also call, as can health professionals supporting expecting and new parents.

More resources:

Pregnancy, Birth and Baby Helpline: 1800 882 436 (24/7)

Lifeline: 13 11 14 (24/7) or lifeline.org.au (12pm to midnight)

Suicide Callback Service: 1300 659 467 or suicidecallbackservice.org.au (24/7)

QLife: 1800 184 527 or qlife.org.au (3PM to midnight)

Mensline: 1300 78 99 78 or mensline.org.au (24/7)

If you need help now:

If you are concerned about your safety or that of a loved one, please call 000 or visit your local hospital emergency department.

Acknowledgement

PANDA acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land where we work and live and where this podcast is made. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We celebrate the stories, culture and traditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders of all communities who also work and live on this land.

We recognise the individual and collective contributions of people with a lived and/or living experience of mental health issues, their families, loved ones and supporters.

Each person’s journey is unique and a valued contribution to Australia’s commitment to PANDA's work and mental health systems reform.

It is through listening to and acting on the voices of people with lived experience, that those who provide services, those who fund services, and most importantly, those who use services that we will find the information we need to move towards the mental health system Australia needs.

Every person’s story we hear, every experience shared, helps to develop our understanding of the system that is required to best meet the needs of Australians living with mental health issues, their families, loved ones and supporters.

CREDITS

Host: Gia Hogarth

PANDA Digital Editor: Serena Ashmore

PANDA Commissioning Editor: Bec Shafer

Deadset Studios Senior Producer: Grace Pashley

Deadset Studios Executive Producer: Rachel Fountain

Sound Design by Krissy Miltiadou