The WOW Factor: Participant Karren Shares Her Story
Karren with Lead Facilitator Luke during our winter block of programs.
Karren, 53, attended our first ever Adult Mental Health COVID-19 Response Program in 2021 at Nobbys Beach, Newcastle and our virtual program during the lockdown.
“WOW taught me resilience, strength and that I'm very capable. I learnt that I am not my mental illness.”
Karren's first program was for people impacted by COVID-19 (the first wave). The group had a mix of people from different backgrounds and lived experiences with mental health. Karren, like all participants, was quite shy at the beginning, but it was clear that she was comfortable in a group setting. Karren mentioned that she was isolated and struggled with relationships associated with her personality disorder, her depressive symptoms often invited suicidal thoughts.
Karren was open about her mental health condition and spoke about her vulnerabilities, as well as her strengths. This immediately put the other participants at ease about their own issues, providing a sense of safety for people to discuss their challenges, and normalise talking about mental health.
“My health professionals believed that WOW would be good for me and provide me with more tools in my mental health tool box. I was surprised with how professional the facilitators were with mental health, as well as their knowledge of surfing”.
Karren experienced many ups and downs throughout the 8-week program, and often hesitated about coming some mornings if her mental health was low. However, her attendance throughout was rock solid, Kaz even attended our virtual session while she was in hospital!
“The Virtual Program was a god-send in lockdown, to be able to have someone to check in with each week. We learnt about weather maps and how to read surf reports. Also just to chill and talk about all things surfing.”
While Karren wouldn't admit to being a confident surfer, her love for the ocean and its transformative ability was clear to see. She was always frothing post-session and lifting the vibe amongst the other participants, encouraging other people to jump outside their comfort zone and get some waves!
“I loved the beach program for the connection of others, and watching other participants catch waves. I use my boogie board but next block I want to really do my best and try a surfboard. Jumping and kneeling are out as I have knee and hip problems. But the guys are very determined to find a way!”
The reports from Kaz's support workers and clinical teams is that WOW has increased her mood and contributed to other aspects of psycho-social recovery.
“I learnt that it is okay to not be okay that I can come to the programs feeling vulnerable. I once rang Luke to see if it was okay to come along when one of my mental disorders was making it hard for me. The answer was yes as long as I could get there safely. He said they would build me up.”
Long after the program ended, Karren’s support has not waned. She jumps at the chance to fundraise for WOW and promotes the work we do at every chance. Our suicide prevention campaign, Plank up the Volume, particularly struck a chord with Kaz.
She admitted that she could have “easily been one of the yearly suicide statistics.”
Kaz proudly rocks her WOW cap every session and is a testament to the benefits of surf therapy and how WOW changes lives. We consider Kaz to be part of the ever-growing community WOW family.
Interviewed by Luke Tomlins, Newcastle Facilitator and Alex Harmon
We’re all about bringing the WOW factor to mental health, so keep an eye out for these magic case studies in the future as we dive deep into what makes people tick, and the essence of their experience with WOW. If you'd like to share your story, drop us a line!