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Transcript

Such is life 😂 · ✨️Aligned and Thriving: For Teachers🌿

0:34
Hello everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Mind and
0:38
Body Door Features. Now I'm sorry if the sound
0:41
quality on this one is not great, this is because I'm
0:44
trying to record it on my phone while I actually think about it
0:47
and have a minute to actually process.
0:49
I'm actually hiding in my car waiting to collect one of my
0:54
kids off my parents. So again, I know I've talked
0:57
about this before but having a village to raise your family is
1:00
utterly amazing. Like I would not survive without
1:03
my mum and dad in the picture at this point in time because we
1:07
physically cannot be everywhere. These kids like I love them, but
1:12
the sports, like we have so many sports on.
1:15
But this year, Lucky Touchwood at this point in time, we
1:17
actually have a couple of nights a week where we're we're free
1:21
like there is nothing on. But that does mean the flip side
1:25
is that we have notifications coming through my phone.
1:27
Sorry, no, is that we have we have some things that are
1:32
actually like doubled up. So we may have multiple things
1:37
happening on on one day instead of having them spread out across
1:40
the week. So I do have some very exhausted
1:42
children and obviously myself too.
1:45
OK, so with that being said, I'm currently sitting in my car, but
1:49
found the need or the urge. I think I might have to say to
1:54
record this episode for you just because I think I'm at this
1:56
point now where I'm like, yes, I just need to talk about it.
2:01
So and and this is I don't know whether you guys are in the same
2:05
boat. And so just sharing this caring
2:07
and that's what I'm going to do. A lot of the things that I do
2:09
share on my podcast, I've been really strategic.
2:13
Like I sit down, I really think about things, I process.
2:17
I think about questions that you might ask and try and answer
2:19
them within the actual podcast too.
2:22
So I'm not just like rambling because I can do that.
2:26
Like I could just go on a whole different rampage about
2:29
something if I don't have something to sort of guide me
2:32
and questions to guide me in the right direction.
2:34
So today might end up being one of those episodes where I kind
2:38
of ramble and go here and there. But it is something that is on
2:41
my heart that I want to share because again, as I said,
2:45
someone else might need to hear this or might be thinking the
2:48
same thing, so why not? So for me, this episode is all
2:52
about just, I think I want to call it like sharing is caring
2:57
because you just you don't know if someone else is in the same
3:01
position as you or someone else might be able to provide you
3:05
with advice. So I'm going to be honest, I've
3:09
had episodes about imposter syndrome.
3:11
And if you haven't listened to those, please feel free to go
3:13
back and have a listen. But I want to say this is
3:17
something that still I find difficult and I'm, I'm being
3:21
honest, I'm always honest, but I find this really hard.
3:25
I actually get a deep seated like guilt feeling before I
3:31
share some things because I think like, am I allowed to say
3:34
that? Can I share that?
3:37
Is it really something that's big enough to warrant someone
3:42
feeling sorry for me or someone offering me advice and support
3:47
because I want to be that person for other people?
3:49
Like I want to be someone that people turn to and ask questions
3:52
and go, oh, how do I do this or how, how can I support this kid?
3:56
But sometimes I don't have the answer.
3:58
And I'm not ashamed to say that. But then at the same time, I'm
4:02
going through stuff too, like I'm not a perfect human being
4:05
who is What is that? Like?
4:07
What is perfection? It to me it's not a thing unless
4:11
you ask my father, bless him, he would like to declare to the
4:15
world that he's perfect because he just, he owns everything
4:18
himself. Like that just that's just him.
4:21
And I love him. So I've I've forever grown up
4:24
with, with telling people like when you're a little kid, like,
4:26
oh, but my dad's perfect. He says he is.
4:29
And you just believe it with that wholehearted innocent.
4:32
But I am not, I am not a perfect mum.
4:36
I'm not a perfect teacher and I'm not a perfect human being.
4:39
OK, I still stuff up in in life. I still have issues like I do
4:44
not leave lead a perfect life. OK, So please get that straight.
4:51
I hope that my content is real and raw enough for you.
4:55
And I leave most of these podcasts, actually leave all of
4:57
them mostly unedited because I'm, I don't have the
5:01
technological skills to actually like, edit them.
5:03
That's why Niall is in the background of episodes.
5:06
That's why the kids interrupt me and all I can do is pause.
5:10
There's just, that's just me. I am not perfect.
5:14
That means that sometimes I obviously muck up and stuff
5:17
happens to me too. I know I would have shared with
5:20
you that my going back to work this year in 2026, like what the
5:25
heck happened to me going back to work smoothly that did not
5:30
occur. Like 1:45 AM in the morning I
5:34
get woken up by fire outside my house.
5:36
Like Yep, great start to going back to work.
5:39
I've been up since 145, really could not get back to sleep
5:43
because you are so high on adrenaline.
5:45
And I was also worried because I was like, oh, is it going to
5:48
happen again? Is it going to flare up?
5:49
Do I need to wake up? What's that noise?
5:51
What's this like? My husband thought it was kind
5:54
of hilarious because yes, he is a volunteer firefighter and he's
5:56
been one since he was 16. So that's like, a long time now,
6:00
and he knows how to deal with stuff, But when you are half
6:04
asleep and it is your own house, it is completely different.
6:07
But he still found the time to laugh at me because I was like,
6:11
ah, the sun's rising. It's really early for the sun to
6:14
be rising. Oh, it's really orange.
6:17
That's really weird. And then to have, like, our
6:19
child come in and be like, the house is on fire.
6:21
I'm sorry. What?
6:22
Yeah. When I told that to my husband,
6:25
he was like Melanie, the sun rises on the other side of the
6:28
house. Yep.
6:30
Cool. So I have no sense of direction.
6:32
You should all know this by now. I am terrible.
6:34
I go by markings and I still have no clue where my house is
6:37
situated like direction wise and I still have to look and be like
6:41
so which way is north? So if you get lost with me, good
6:45
luck to you because don't you don't follow me because I'm
6:48
already lost. OK, sorry.
6:51
That was like the start of my return to work.
6:53
So not ideal, not perfect. Going to work rundown, tired.
6:58
Honestly, sometimes I think if you've ever had the experience
7:01
of being hungover, not that I drink anymore, but if you have
7:05
had that experience, being tired can be so much worse than that.
7:09
So I was tired and I still had to function at that 100%
7:17
returning to work, trying to be there for everyone else and that
7:19
was really hard. That was hard for me, but I did
7:21
it and we survived. So that was my going back to
7:24
work and then at the same time, like that same week, we then had
7:30
a slithery visitor in our pump shed.
7:33
So that scared the life out of me and the kids and my husband
7:38
just handled it in his stride and the snake was relocated.
7:41
But to me, I'm like, what the heck is going on here?
7:44
I've had a fire now. I've had a snake like, yes, we
7:47
were the year of the snake and that all of that stuff is
7:50
shedding and now we're moving into like the year of the horse,
7:54
like amazing. We're charging forward, we're
7:56
getting on with life, we're moving on.
7:58
So maybe that was like everything finishing up for me.
8:01
I don't know. But I've gone into this year
8:03
with with those things happening and then having to do insurance
8:07
claims without realising how much stuff we actually lost.
8:13
And still trying to feel gratitude and be grateful for
8:15
everything I still have in this life and my family that I have.
8:19
And the fact that I do have the ability to pay insurance and
8:21
this is what it's there for. And being able to tap into that
8:24
and use it and go, yeah, OK, we're we're going to do a claim.
8:27
We're going to claim the stuff we've lost because ironically,
8:30
we lost the 22,000 litre water tank, which we had there ready
8:36
to install for fighting fires. So isn't that ironic that that
8:39
was the thing that like went up in flames?
8:41
But anyway, so all of that stuff will be replaced and, and all
8:46
that. And I think that's why I get to
8:48
this point where I'm like, you are not replaceable in your own
8:51
family's life. Stuff is.
8:53
And that's why you need to look after yourself.
8:55
But I was still getting to that point where I'm like, oh, do I
8:58
tell people this? Like, do I share with them that
9:02
my house has been on fire and that there was a snake in our
9:04
backyard that scared us and that there's massive spiders in my
9:09
house because when it rains, the spiders come in and I got
9:11
scared. And it's just, I live an
9:14
everyday life, but I'm trying to be.
9:17
And it's really hard to be modest because, I mean, I'm not
9:20
saying it's hard to be honest. It's hard to be the confident
9:24
person that I, I again, impostor syndrome.
9:26
I sometimes pretend to be this confident person.
9:29
Yeah, I try and be this confident person and try and,
9:35
you know, just fake it till I make it.
9:37
And so sometimes I've turned up and pretending to be all put
9:40
together and literally I've just turned.
9:42
I have physically turned up. And that is me there today.
9:46
You are in the same boat too. I know you are and I see you.
9:50
And This is why I've created this podcast so that we can all
9:52
band together and know that sometimes you will just turn up
9:56
as a shell of a human being. And that's OK.
9:59
But please look after you, go back to looking after your
10:03
health. Prioritise rest, Drink more
10:06
water. Like it is amazing what being
10:09
hydrated can just do for your entire body.
10:13
Prioritise your eating like healthier eating is going to
10:16
make you mentally and physically feel better.
10:19
Your mental health is so important and you can't just
10:23
keep pushing it aside. I've learnt that in all my years
10:26
of teaching and I actually think I bounced back so much faster
10:31
with all that stuff. Like I'm not catastro.
10:34
I don't want to catastrophize anything.
10:36
But like, those are some big events.
10:38
They were. They're not something that
10:40
happens every day in people's lives.
10:42
Like, well, if you do have snakes in your house every day,
10:44
like, Oh my God, I really don't want to live where you live.
10:47
But that does not happen to us every day.
10:50
We do not have these things happen.
10:52
It's out of the ordinary and it dysregulates us.
10:55
It dysregulates us as a family. Like my daughter couldn't sleep
10:59
well for the rest of that week because she was worried that she
11:01
was going to have to wake up. And my son slept through the
11:04
whole thing. Like that scares me as a mum
11:08
too, because I'm like, Oh my gosh, if the house was actually
11:11
on fire, he's just going to be asleep.
11:14
What am I going to do? What am I going to do if I can't
11:16
get up the stairs to get him? So then all that stuff played
11:19
through your mind and my husband like he's straight away going to
11:22
having a two Storey ladder outside now because he's now and
11:26
that that's him being caring. Like he will not say that to me,
11:29
but all of a sudden there's a ladder outside and I'm like, why
11:33
is there a ladder outside? He's like, well, I just thought
11:35
about the fact that if there is another fire, which gosh, I hope
11:39
there isn't, but if there is another fire and we can't get
11:41
upstairs, how am I going to get the kids out?
11:44
So I've just sat that there. So that's him actually being
11:46
that kind and caring person. He didn't communicate that with
11:49
me until I'm like, why is there a lot of there?
11:52
Like it's those little things that add up to me.
11:55
He's like, I really think that his thing like his love
11:59
language, whatever you want to call it, it's like acts of
12:01
service. Because this is another thing
12:04
just to add to my least of, of crazy hectic return to work.
12:09
Literally the Sunday night, you know, the Sunday night, the
12:11
night before you return to work and you're like, I'm going to
12:16
prepare myself. I'm going to go to bed early.
12:18
I'm going to eat well, I'm going to drink lots.
12:21
I'm going to be so ready to return to work.
12:24
So I was going to do that. I had all that in my head.
12:26
I had a nice relaxing Sunday planned.
12:29
No, why? Why do I make these plans?
12:32
Like that was just opening myself up to a world of failure
12:35
because my husband just went, Oh, we've got a new window
12:38
sitting there. I mean, a new window was a
12:40
sliding door. We're taking out a window and
12:42
replacing it in our bedroom with a sliding door to go out onto
12:45
the invisible deck because we don't have a deck yet.
12:46
But we'll, we'll build 1 like kitchen 1st and we're working
12:50
our way through. But like we had a sliding window
12:54
sitting there. So he's like, let's put a window
12:55
in. Like what?
12:58
It's, it's Sunday. I go to work tomorrow.
13:00
Like I'm not home tomorrow. If if you don't get this done in
13:03
a day, like I'm not going to be out of sleep, he's like, no,
13:07
I'll get it done. And literally in, in like half
13:11
an hour, he's outside, he's smashing, he's ripping the
13:13
window out of the wall, He's smashing bricks everywhere.
13:16
He's phoning in friends to come and help him lift this thing.
13:19
And I'm like, Oh my gosh. And yeah, yeah, he did it.
13:22
He did it by the end of that day.
13:23
Like, hats off to him when he sets his mind to something like
13:27
it is done. I mean, that's how he got me.
13:29
He set his mind to something and he was very persistent.
13:32
And that's what he did. So literally not before you go
13:35
back to work. I've had a whole window knocked
13:37
out and a sliding door put in. I go to bed, I wake up to a fire
13:41
later on in the week, there's a snake.
13:43
And then there is like horrible massive spiders in my house
13:47
because of the weather changing. And I've gone back to work.
13:50
It was like everything that could possibly have happened and
13:53
go wrong sort of went wrong. Oh, yeah.
13:55
And to add to that too, my car, my my car that we worked so hard
14:01
for, we take pride in and it's the first one that we sort of
14:05
had since the kids are out of car seats.
14:06
We want to look after all those types of things.
14:09
Like my car went in for a service the week before I went
14:11
back to work and it didn't actually come back.
14:14
It took a week to come back because they thought that they'd
14:17
actually blown up my engine. It was a service that had gone
14:20
completely wrong and the situation was rectified.
14:22
My car is OK and I do have it back now, but that's not stress
14:26
that I needed before returning back to work.
14:29
So it actually really, really tested me as a human to prepare
14:35
myself for these things. And I'm trying to go through and
14:38
like, no, I need to meditate, I need to regulate, I need to do
14:41
some EFT tapping on this because I am not coping.
14:45
So this is not me going, oh, I need attention because all these
14:50
things happened. No, this is me saying, sometimes
14:54
you go to work and you have had stuff go down and you still have
14:58
to turn up. And you turn up for your kids,
15:01
you turn up for your staff, you turn up for everyone.
15:03
You switch all that stuff off and you just get the job done
15:06
and you do your absolute best because that's what I'm there
15:08
for. And that's what I do.
15:11
OK, So sometimes people will come in and say to me like, are
15:15
you OK? And I'll probably just go, yeah,
15:17
when secretly I really want to turn around and be like, no,
15:21
this happened, this happened, this happened, this happened,
15:23
this happened. And I don't even know how I'm
15:24
standing in front of you right now, but I'm here.
15:27
And sometimes I do say that to people because sometimes they
15:31
will take that honesty and I'll be like, so actually this
15:35
morning this happened and this happened and and yeah, we've had
15:38
a morning. Some mornings, like I wouldn't
15:41
be surprised to tell you to tell you, sorry, I had to.
15:47
I actually cut out then because dad was ringing me to say he's
15:49
bringing a kid out. But yeah, some mornings,
15:52
Speaking of children, I have had like a hell of a morning.
15:57
I get up at 4:30. OK, I've told you about my
15:59
morning routine before. So I've gotten up at 4:30.
16:02
I would have done my workout. I would have done my meditation.
16:06
I have done my gratitude journal or journalling for that day.
16:09
I would have probably read a little bit of my book.
16:11
If I have time, I may have done an Instagram post.
16:14
You're a little inspiration of the day because now I can like
16:17
hide in front of my new pantry. And then I would have packed the
16:21
kids lunches. Like I've done all of these
16:22
things and then the kids get up and then I've got to help them
16:25
get ready for school and help my kids to be like regulated and
16:29
ready to go. And we have a routine and a
16:31
structure and we try to follow that everyday.
16:33
But that does not work. Like sometimes Nyla is trying to
16:35
jump up on the kitchen bench or she's on the dining room table
16:38
and doing things and eating things that she shouldn't be
16:41
eating. And then we're running around
16:42
chasing the dog. Or like Kane can't find his
16:46
right work clothes and so I'm pulling the wardrobe apart
16:48
trying to find his stuff that he put in the wash and forgot that
16:51
he put in the wash. All the kids like my son.
16:54
I love him dearly. He's having sensory shoes
16:56
because his shoes aren't going on right.
16:57
So I've had a shoe thrown at my head by accident.
17:00
Of course, he wouldn't do that on purpose, but he usually would
17:02
have thrown something. So he's spat it.
17:04
And then I'm trying to get in the car and I've got this one
17:06
arguing with this one because I don't want to sit in that seat.
17:08
And it's your turn to feed the dog.
17:09
And this has happened and this has happened.
17:10
And then I go to work and then they're in my office and they're
17:12
on the floor and then they're, oh, I want the heater.
17:14
No, I want the heater. And then, oh, she touched me.
17:17
Oh, he hit me. It's just everything's happened
17:20
and then it gets to like 820 and I'm saying goodbye and I love
17:23
you. Have a great day to my children,
17:25
delivering them to their teachers and then it's on.
17:28
So all of this stuff has happened and I'm still at work
17:31
and I'm still turned up and I'm like, hi, let's do this.
17:34
What can I achieve today? Because that is what we do.
17:39
That is what we do as teachers. That is what we do as partners,
17:42
as wives, as mums, as everything.
17:44
Whether you live alone, you could have had issues, you could
17:47
have had your car breakdown, you could have had an issue with
17:49
your dog, you could have had a whole bunch of stuff.
17:51
I know. But before I had kids, I had
17:54
issues with neighbours. Like we lived in town and so
17:56
there was stuff going on there. And so I'd have to sort that out
17:58
and then I'd have to go here. There is stuff that happens
18:01
because we are human, OK? So hats off to you if you have
18:06
gone through some stuff and you turn up to work and you still
18:10
teach those kids with 110% with your whole heart, your whole
18:13
body, your whole soul. And you are there for them
18:16
because they need that too. They need structure, they need
18:18
routine, they need relationships, they need love
18:21
and respect, the same as what you do.
18:24
But you've turned up and you've done that for them.
18:27
And then you finish and then you probably go home and collapse.
18:30
Because yeah, I did that. After my first few days, when I
18:33
returned to work, I was physically exhausted.
18:36
Because it takes a toll on your body.
18:38
And that's OK. I am admitting that, OK, again,
18:42
this episode is not about me going, oh, I need attention
18:45
because all of this stuff's happened to me.
18:46
Where, Where, Where? No, I want you to know that
18:50
whatever happens to you, this is all normal, OK?
18:53
But I don't want you to dwell in it, and I don't want you to not
18:57
use strategies and resources that are available to you to
19:00
help you bounce back because that's what I have had to do.
19:05
I have had to tap back into these things.
19:07
I have had to become resilient. I've had to use my resources to
19:10
support myself. And I do that.
19:13
And again, gratitude is the biggest one.
19:16
It changes everything. My mindset could have gone into
19:20
a massive, massive negative spiral from all of that stuff
19:24
that happened. And man, I've had some stuff
19:26
happened to me in my lifetime. My life is far from perfect.
19:30
I have experienced bushfires as a kid.
19:33
I have lost a lot of stuff due to flooding in my own house
19:36
twice when growing up, not just once.
19:39
Twice I have been in my house when my house was on fire after
19:43
coming home from a family holiday.
19:45
Like that was an experience. I have been through a lot.
19:48
I have lost a lot of loved ones. I have lost a lot of stuff.
19:53
But the stuff is replaceable and people are not.
19:57
So spend time with the people that you love.
19:59
Be grateful with the time that you have with them, for the time
20:03
that you have with the beautiful children that these parents
20:05
trust us to look after and nurture.
20:08
Just be grateful for all of those opportunities.
20:11
Because I am grateful that I get this opportunity to share and
20:16
support you guys the best as I can because this is something
20:19
that I could have used when I was in these first few years of
20:22
my teaching. And I can still, and I still do
20:25
refer back to some of the stuff that I've talked about in my
20:28
actual episodes to support me because it's not just me sharing
20:32
with you. It's like a record of all the
20:34
things that I've learned and go, yeah, I've talked about that
20:37
before. I need to remind myself of what
20:39
I need to do and how I need to speak to myself.
20:42
I need to be more affirming about the things that I do and
20:45
less of this negative chatter that comes into your head.
20:49
And that's why I do what I do. And I love what I do, and I love
20:53
sharing this stuff with you. As I said, I am open.
20:56
I am honest because all I want to do is help because I know
20:59
what it's like, OK? I am not an aesthetically
21:04
pleasing, like picture perfect Instagram worthy.
21:09
I'm just human, OK? There is nothing worse to me
21:13
than looking at some of these people that have spent hours
21:16
doing their makeup before they can film themself in the
21:18
morning. I have filmed myself taking off
21:21
my makeup. I have filmed myself in my daggy
21:24
clothes. Like there is no shame.
21:26
If you rock up at my house, I'm still going to let you in and be
21:29
like, yeah, my house is a mess because it's lived in.
21:31
We all live here. What do you want me to do?
21:33
Like I am not going to stop people from coming just because
21:36
of that. I just want you to say that this
21:39
is all normal and I'm never going to be that person.
21:41
So please don't. If you don't want to see me in
21:45
my realness and rawness, then stop following me.
21:47
Stop listening to me. But I hope that you do stay and
21:50
you do share this information and all of these blessings with
21:53
others because I think we all need to support each other and
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know that everyone is normal. There is no perfect.
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We need to show more of the raw and real reality of what we are
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actually going through as humans and as teachers and as parents.
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It's just all of the things, wherever you are at in your
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career, in your life journey, all of the things.
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We just need to remember that social media has made so many
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things look so good, but in reality, like, well, that's not
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reality, OK? So unfollow those people that
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don't bring you joy. Follow the ones that do.
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Change your algorithm that comes up in your feed by giving
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feedback to the AI bots or whatever it is and just, yeah,
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share the good stuff. Let's show gratitude towards all
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the things that we love and the people that we love and all
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that. So this was just all on my heart
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with all the stuff that I've gone through.
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And I hope that you do take a lot of this stuff on.
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Just take it as feedback I guess, and I would love for you
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guys to get in touch with me. If there's anything that you
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want me to touch on or share or answer questions, I'm always up
23:01
for a chat. Please feel free to touch base
23:04
with me on Instagram, Aligned and Thriving for Teachers or
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send me an email Aligned and Thriving for teachers@gmail.com.