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Over the Back Fence

Over the Back Fence

Di Edwards and Nicola Dale have been best friends for close to four decades & they actually share a ‘back fence’ in Sydney!  They share a love of life, a passion for people, and have discovered a simple conversation over the back fence, can change a life and give a sense of belonging .  “We’re not neuroscientists, psychologists, doctors or monks - we just love people - and know with age comes wisdom.

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55 min
Sunday

Brook Boney's Brilliant Next Chapter: From Morning TV to Oxford

This week Nicola and Di chat with the inspiring trailblazer Brook Boney. Brook is a proud Gamilaroi woman. She’s a political reporter and much loved broadcaster who took the big leap of leaving her job as the entertainment reporter for The Today Show, to follow her dream to study at Oxford. Brook has written a new book All Of It, which tells her story in a beautiful and moving way and we absolutely love it.  In this conversation we hear about the brave decision Brook made to leave one of the most coveted jobs in Australian TV to pursue a Masters in Public Policy at Oxford University. She shares why even though it was difficult to leave behind a job like that, and even harder still to move so far away from her family, she has no regrets. Nicola and Di also share their own life-changing decisions and how they look back proudly at those decisions now.  Brook tells us what life is like at Oxford and how she’s having so much fun. She’s even landed herself in the college that recruits for spies (although Brook admits she’d be a terrible spy after a champagne of two).  Brook opens up about her personal story, growing up poor in housing commission in Muswellbrook, and how she’s been the first in her family for so many of the things she’s achieved. She speaks beautifully about how proud she is to be Aboriginal, and what it means to her to feel completely connected as one link in the chain of a 60,000 year history, and the sense of duty she feels not only to those that have come before her, but also to the next generation of her family.  Brook also shares about the grief she felt when her 2 dogs passed away, and the future dreams she has to be a mother one day. This is a deeply personal chat and one that we feel so lucky we were able to have with Brook. It’s also a lot of fun - we laugh all the way through this with Brook and we felt like we all were having a glass of wine together over the back fence. We hope you love Brook’s energy and her story as much as we did.  If you love our Over The Back Fence chats, come and hang out with us and some amazing guests at our in person event on the 19th of June at the Woolly Bay Hotel in Sydney. You can buy your tickets here - https://events.humanitix.com/over-the-back-fence-podcast-9r2scfqj/tickets  This episode is proudly supported by Montgomery Investment Management, trusted experts helping you build and protect your financial future.  Follow Brook on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/boneybrooke/ Buy Brook’s book All of It here - https://www.amazon.com.au/All-public-private-everything-between/dp/1761068008 Follow Nicola and Di on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/overthebackfencepodcast/ Watch Over The Back Fence on YouTube here - https://www.youtube.com/@Overthebackfencepodcast/podcasts Buy your Eir Women products here. Use code OTBF20 at checkout for a 20% discountSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brook Boney's Brilliant Next Chapter: From Morning TV to Oxford
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54 min
18 May

Michele Chevally Hedge - Mood, Food & The Power of Positive Energy

This week Nicola and Di chat with nutritionist and best-selling author Michele Chevalley Hedge. Michele is also an international speaker, and a highly commended nutritional medicine practitioner. As a former Microsoft executive, she truly understands the needs of time-poor corporate executives who want health but not hassle. She is committed to helping people feel energised, balanced and empowered without giving up life’s pleasures - and we like the sound of that!  In this conversation, we talk about energy and simple things that people can do if they’re feeling burnt out. Michele has a beautifully holistic approach, and looks at all of the aspects of someone’s life, not just what they’re eating. Michele tells us why sleep is the ultimate pillar of wellbeing, and gives us ways you can increase your magnesium levels so you get a better night’s sleep.  We also talk about gut health and the fascinating link between your gut and your mental health. Michele lets us know about an amazing Deakin University study, which proves the link between eating whole foods and improved mental health. Michele tells us what to look out for when it comes to the food we’re eating - how to avoid added sugars and the importance of getting good protein, fats and carbs in all our meals. We also have a really interesting chat about midlife - the way that both men and women are affected by hormonal changes in that time. Michele wants to rebrand it from a midlife crisis to a midlife lift because of how great this time of your life can be! This was such a helpful and interesting conversation about how we can make healthier choices and focus on our wellbeing, which is our most important resource. Michele encourages everyone to take small steps, because small changes over time can lead to incredible progress. We had such a wonderful time with Michele in the studio and we hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did. If you love our Over The Back Fence chats, come and hang out with us and some amazing guests at our in person event on the 19th of June at the Woolly Bay Hotel in Sydney. You can buy your tickets here - https://events.humanitix.com/over-the-back-fence-podcast-9r2scfqj/tickets  This episode is proudly supported by Montgomery Investment Management, trusted experts helping you build and protect your financial future.  Follow Michele on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/ahealthyview/?hl=en Follow Michele on LinkedIn here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michele-chevalley-hedge/ Find out more about Michele and her work here - https://www.ahealthyview.com/ Buy Michele’s books here - https://www.ahealthyview.com/books Follow Nicola and Di on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/overthebackfencepodcast/ Buy your Eir Women products here. Use code OTBF20 at checkout for a 20% discountSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michele Chevally Hedge - Mood, Food & The Power of Positive Energy
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48 min
11 May

Sam Bloom: When Family, A Magpie, A Renewed Purpose and Adventure Brought Her Back To Life

This week Nicola and Di chat with the remarkable Sam Bloom. Sam’s a mum of 3, who lived a very full and active life until a devastating accident in Thailand left her paralysed. In the midst of rebuilding, along came Penguin, the little magpie who helped her heal. Their story became a best-selling book, captured by her photographer husband Cam, and later turned into a global hit film, Penguin Bloom. Now a world-champion para-kayaker, surfer and a passionate advocate, Sam is testament to the inner strength that each of us can find when faced with adversity. In this conversation, we hear about that fateful day in Thailand, when in the blink of an eye, Sam’s life changed forever when she fell through a rotten balcony railing and crashed six metres onto the concrete below. Sam shares just how awful that experience was, including the moment when she was told she would never walk again, and she thought that her life was over.  Sam opens up about how much guilt she felt as a mother who could no longer look after her 3 boys in the way that she used to. The simple things she wasn’t able to do for them, and how much she hated the way the tables had turned and her boys needed to look after her. We also hear about the incredible moments of support and acts of kindness from her family and those around her, that gave her a renewed sense of purpose and allowed her to find hope again through competitive para-kayaking. Sam went on to compete in competitions around the world, and was also encouraged to get back into surfing, and went on to win Gold for Australia in the 2018, 2020 and 2023 World Para Surfing Championships. And of course we talk about the beautiful story of a little magpie named Penguin, who also played a big part in Sam’s healing. Sam shares how what started as an Instagram account, went onto become a best-selling book and then a film with Naomi Watts.  This is such a beautiful and honest conversation about the importance of community, resilience, and the healing power of laughter and purpose. We were so honoured to have this chat with Sam and we hope you love it as much as we did.  If you love our Over The Back Fence chats, come and hang out with us and some amazing guests at our in person event on the 19th of June at the Woolly Bay Hotel in Sydney. You can buy your tickets here - https://events.humanitix.com/over-the-back-fence-podcast-9r2scfqj/tickets  This episode is proudly supported by Montgomery Investment Management, trusted experts helping you build and protect your financial future.  Follow Sam on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/samjbloom/?hl=en Follow Sam on Facebook here - https://www.facebook.com/sambloomaustralia# Find out more about Sam and her work here - https://sambloom.com.au/ Buy the books Penguin Bloom and Sam Bloom here - https://www.penguinthemagpie.com/ Follow Nicola and Di on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/overthebackfencepodcast/ Buy your Eir Women products here. Use code OTBF20 at checkout for a 20% discountSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sam Bloom: When Family, A Magpie, A Renewed Purpose and Adventure Brought Her Back To Life
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53 min
4 May

Nici Andronicus and Tania Taylor-Frost: Two Women's Inspirational Stories to Give You a Huge Boost - Changing Lives with Be Centre and GIANTS.

This week Nicola and Di chat with 2 incredibly inspiring women, Nici Andronicus and Tania Taylor-Frost, whose stories will give you a huge boost. Both of these women do incredible work for the charity Be Centre, which changes the lives of children through play therapy. Nici is a former elite athlete, who represented Australia in triathlon and modern pentathlon. She competed in 10 world championships and over 90 international events, becoming world no. 2 in 1997 and a three-time national triathlon champion. Not only that, Nici is a mother of 5, and does a lot of incredible work for different charities. Tania is the CEO of the Be Centre, helping children navigate trauma and big emotions through play therapy and early support. She’s also the director of the Sydney Skinny, a passionate force for children’s mental health and a fierce advocate for early intervention. Tania is also a proud mum of 2.  In this conversation you’ll hear Nici’s powerful story of what it was like when her husband was diagnosed with brain cancer when she was 20 weeks pregnant with their 5th child. Nici was able to draw on the incredible resilience and strong mindset that she developed in her career as an elite athlete, to help her get through what was arguably the biggest challenge of her life.  Nici shares openly and vulnerably about what it was like for her family, and how her youngest child was deeply affected and needed the support of the Be Centre to be able to process the trauma and difficult emotions that he was going through.  We also hear Tania’s story, and how she originally met Nicola during a hiking trip with Wild Women On Top, where they were supposed to share a tent - you’ll have to listen in to hear what actually happened. She shares about why she was motivated to switch from working in tech for corporates and government to working for charities, and what it’s like for her now in her role as CEO for the Be Centre.  When you listen to the passion that these 2 women have for making a positive difference in the world and the way they talk about giving as a gift to self, we guarantee you’ll feel inspired like we did.  If you want to give back in a really fun way, we’d love you to consider attending the Be Centre Annual Charity Gala, on Friday May 30th. Tickets are $280 and all proceeds help families and children who otherwise could not access therapy due to financial hardship.  This episode is proudly supported by Montgomery Investment Management, trusted experts helping you build and protect your financial future.  Follow Be Centre on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/becentrefoundation/ Buy Tickets to the Be Centre Annual Charity Gala here - https://www.becentre.org.au/events/save-the-date-be-centre-annual-gala-dinner-30-may-2025/ Follow Be Centre on Facebook here - https://www.facebook.com/becentre/ Follow Nici on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/niciandronicus1/ Follow the GIANTS on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/gwsgiants/ Follow Nicola and Di on IG here - https://www.instagram.com/overthebackfencepodcast/ Buy your Eir Women products here. Use code OTBF20 at checkout for a 20% discountSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nici Andronicus and Tania Taylor-Frost: Two Women's Inspirational Stories to Give You a Huge Boost - Changing Lives with Be Centre and GIANTS.
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