The Tree of Me: A Journey of Grief, Growth & Creative Healing

In this heartfelt episode, rich with lived experience, metaphor, emotion, and strength survivors share their deeply personal journeys through grief, growth, and healing. We explore the transformative power of Broken to Brilliant’s Stepping Stones program, which helped participants rediscover themselves after experiencing domestic violence. Through raw and inspiring stories, survivors reflect on the grief of losing their sense of self and how they reclaimed it through self-exploration, connection, and empowerment. The episode also features a survivor’s reflection on being involved with the incredible creative expression of Circus in a Teacup, a performance by survivors at QPAC, that represents their journey of resilience and strength. Listen as these courageous voices take you on a path of transformation — from the grief of trauma to the growth that unfolds when survivors find their power once again. The Stepping Stones program was funded by the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Trust.      

In this deeply moving episode of The Voice of Survivors, we sit down with Jane, a courageous participant in Broken to Brilliant’s Stepping Stones program. Jane reflects on the emotional journey she has taken—from feeling scared and triggered on day one to discovering confidence, clarity, and hope through this trauma-informed, survivor-led course. Jane shares how the support and shared lived experiences of other women in the group, combined with the thoughtful design of the program, helped her to regulate emotions, reconnect with her sense of self-worth, and feel truly seen and safe. This episode highlights the profound impact of survivor-to-survivor mentoring, the healing power of sisterhood, and the life-changing strength of finding hope after hardship. Tune in to hear a raw, real, and inspirational conversation about what it means to move from brokenness to brilliance—and why, for Jane and so many others, this program has been a lifeline. Lord Mayor Charitable Trust funded the Stepping Stones program.    

Broken to Brilliant Voice of Survivors Get Uncomfortable to Get Comfortable: The Power of Stepping Stones In this heartfelt episode of The Voice of Survivors, we join two incredible participants of the Stepping Stones program on the final day of their overnight retreat. The Rode podcast equipment is set up in the lounge of a Brisbane apartment, rain tapping gently against the windows, with the river and city skyline in the distance. After breakfast and 9 sessions of creative exploration, these brave survivors sit down to reflect on the transformative ten- session journey of the Broken to Brilliant Stepping Stones A Creative Journey to Empowerment program. . Through poetry, art, and connection, they’ve uncovered parts of themselves once buried under the weight of trauma. In this episode, you’ll hear a raw and inspiring conversation about what it means to get uncomfortable in order to grow, to heal creatively, and to rewrite your story with strength and self-worth. This is a powerful reminder that healing isn’t linear—but when done in community, it becomes empowering. The Stepping Stones program was funded by the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Trust  

Rise to Rebuild Welcome to this special episode of the Rise to Rebuild podcast, where we delve into the transformative journey of healing, growth, and empowerment experienced by the participants of our groundbreaking program. Join Jamie and Fiona as they sit down with Sandy, Petra, Kerrie-Anne and Nicole to discuss their personal experiences and insights gained from participating in the Rise to Rebuild program. Rise to Rebuild is a unique program designed to promote post-traumatic growth and provide trauma-informed parenting skills, specifically tailored to support mothers who have experienced abuse. Through a series of therapeutic and creative activities, mindfulness practices, and educational sessions, the program aims to empower mothers with the tools and resources needed to rebuild their lives and create a nurturing environment for themselves and their children. In this episode, our guests will share their personal stories, challenges, and triumphs, highlighting the profound impact that Rise to Rebuild has had on their lives. From learning new coping skills and embracing self-compassion to breaking generational cycles of abuse and fostering healthier relationships with their children, Sandy, Petra, and Kerrie-Anne offer valuable insights into the transformative power of the Rise to Rebuild program. Whether you're a survivor of abuse seeking inspiration and support on your healing journey or someone interested in learning more about the importance of trauma-informed care and parenting, this episode offers a heartfelt and enlightening conversation that you won't want to miss. Tune in to hear firsthand accounts of resilience, hope, and empowerment as we explore the incredible impact of the Rise to Rebuild program on the lives of survivors and their families. Stay tuned for this insightful conversation and join us on the journey from Broken to Brilliant. Broken to Brilliant sincerley thanks Logan City Council for supporting this program through their community grants program.                                                           

In this episode you will hear about Broken to Brilliant's HEART program - Healing Equine Art Resilience Therapy.  HEART is held in a natural bush setting at The Therapy Pod in Tallebudgera Valley and the program was designed to promote safety & connection for domestic violence and abuse survivors and their children.  In this episode Tracey, HEART facilitator and equine psychotherapist chats with two HEART participants about their experiences with the animals and moments of joy. Liam interviews the HEART program facilitators: Tracey is an Equine Assisted Therapist, Trauma Informed Psychotherapist and Counsellor. Lylle is a volunteer horticulturist assisting with animal handling. Amber a child support worker who volunteers Jane owner of the Therapy Pod & a neurodivergent therapist (counsellor/psychotherapist) We are very thankful that the 2022 HEART Program was funded by the CommBank Staff Foundation. Broken to Brilliant is an Australian not-for-profit charity founded by domestic violence survivors to mentor fellow survivors to recover, heal and rebuild their lives after escaping abuse.  We know how hard it is, having lived through the trauma of abuse and travelled the long road to recovery. Therefore, we founded the charity to provide hope and strategies to other survivors to make their journey a little bit easier.  Thanks to Sound Engineer Chris McCallum known as Soundo for our Podcast training. Thank you to Joanne Helder a Radio, Podcast & Communications Professional for podcast training  Thank you to the Queensland Community Foundation for the grant for the podcast equipment and podcast training.  Thank you to Karen Jacobsen our Patron and voice for the intros and outros.   #Healing, #Art Therapy, #DV-ART, #Domestic Violence Survivors #HEART    

In this session, Netta chats with Margaret and Kate chat about how proud Broken to Brilliant is to be involved in the Misogyny project. This podcast was recorded the day the Directors and domestic violence survivors recorded their section for the Misogyny project. Our hope is that this project will bring new awareness to the community to help reduce misogyny, discrimination, and abuse.  On October 9th, 2012, Australia’s first and so far, only female Prime Minister The Hon. Julia Gillard AC delivered a speech with a message that reverberated around the world addressing misogyny and sexism. Her words carried the power of a long history of women experiencing a lesser standing in our world. Our International Patron, International Songwriter, Concert Artist and Professional Speaker Karen Jacobsen was so inspired by Julia's message of equality that she set this iconic speech to music, word for word, with permission.  To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Speech, the song BETTER STANDARD THAN THIS was released on Saturday, October 1st, 2022. The Music Video is a vibrant presentation of the song with 70 equality advocates from around the world taking part, lip sync-ing lines of the song. Live To learn more about this Misogyny project here are some of the news articles and interviews:  Women's Agenda   Women Trends  In the Cove Canberra Weekly  3AW

In this session, you will hear from Kerry, Kate and thrivers sharing their experiences of art therapy. Broken to Brilliant held our two-day DV-ART program that is held over a two-week period. DV-ART is an acronym for domestic violence amazing resilient thrivers – because that is exactly what survivors of abuse are - amazing resilient thrivers! Charity Founding Director Kate Smith spoke with Kerry Tuck who explained how art therapy helps domestic violence survivors heal and how being creative gives survivors a voice by using symbolism and metaphors. There was an interesting development between art therapy days and Kerry explains something that happened which she learned from a police phone call. Some of the participants also took up the invitation to share their experiences of why they decided to join the DV-ART program and how they felt about the program in this podcast. Participants were excited to be involved in the program and a mother and daughter were able to attend together – they share how the art has helped them to let go. Susanne shared that her voice had been shut down and through art therapy, she felt she now had a voice. The process provided a lot more depth than expected and helped survivors step outside their comfort zone. Participants share how the DV-ART program is a valuable tool to help survivors to heal after abuse. Karen Jacobsen, our International Patron and the Australian voice in Siri welcomes and thanks you for listening.  Broken to Brilliant is an Australian not-for-profit charity that domestic violence survivors founded to support fellow survivors to rebuild their lives after abuse.  We know how hard it is, having lived through the trauma of abuse and travelled the long road to recovery. Therefore, we founded the charity to provide hope and strategies to other survivors to make their journey a little bit easier.  Thanks to Sound Engineer Chris McCallum known as Soundo for our Podcast training. Thank you to Joanne Helder a Radio, Podcast & Communications Professional for podcast training  Thank you to the Queensland Community Foundation for the grant for the podcast equipment and podcast training. 

In this podcast, Margaret and Andrea Directors of Broken to Brilliant discuss the focus of Broken to Brilliant's programs, who can attend and what types of programs the Charity offers.  They discuss our survivor-led support programs, such as DV-ART  HEART Steps to Rebuild your Life online education program, Support walk Give a book  Financial Superwomen Survivor to Thriver mentoring program   Author program - books  Andrea is a Founding Director of Broken to Brilliant and Op Shop Director who volunteers her time to the Charity. Margaret is a Director of Broken to Brilliant who volunteers her time to focus on governance, and fundraising especially through plant sales at the Geebung Op. Karen Jacobsen, our International Patron and the Australian voice in Siri welcomes and thanks you for listening.  Broken to Brilliant is an Australian not-for-profit charity that domestic violence survivors founded to support fellow survivors to rebuild their lives after abuse.  We know how hard it is, having lived through the trauma of abuse and travelled the long road to recovery. Therefore, we founded the charity to provide hope and strategies to other survivors to make their journey a little bit easier.     

Netta, a freelance journalist, a Broken to Brilliant published author, public speaker and anti-domestic violence advocate interviews Fiona Ware about her work to prevent bullying and domestic violence. In this podcast, they talk about how Fiona became involved with the Charity Broken to Brilliant, the HEART program which helps domestic violence survivors heal and Fiona’s children’s book which aims to help prevent bullying and ultimately domestic violence. Fiona Ware is a Children’s author, Community Consultant, Program Facilitator and Arts Therapist. about her work in preventing domestic violence through her books and anti-bullying program. Fiona has published two books and another book is being written and illustrated now: Charming Charlie and the Spectacular Sophia  Sophia and Charlie and the In-Betweens Fiona is on a mission to prevent domestic violence & help survivors heal. Thanks to Sound Engineer Chris McCallum known as Soundo for our Podcast training...  Photo  -Left to Right: Chris, Netta and Fiona. 

The Charity Broken to Brilliant has been founded by domestic violence survivors to mentor fellow survivors helping them to create a new chapter in their lives. In this episode you will hear from the Charity patron and singer song writer, Karen Jacobsen who shares how and why she supports domestic violence survivors. This episode focuses on why would domestic violence survivors and charity supporters want to learn how to podcast? This is the first time the group are learning to use the Rode Professional Podcasting equipment Chris McCallum, known in the audio industry as Soundo helped the group of ten be able to share with you why they have given up their Sunday to attend podcast training and how they will use podcasting to help survivors to rebuild their lives.  Listen in as you hear inspiring, and heart felt reasons why they group gave up their Sunday sleep in to pay it forward. This podcast training was made possible due to the generous support from the Queensland Community Foundation Organisational Capacity Building Grant which assists charities to develop their skills for improved community outcomes.