In this series, we invite you to get to know our volunteers. Here you'll meet Shan.
Shan is a PANDA Community Champion, we work together to raise awareness to reduce stigma, advocate for improved perinatal mental health systems and share messages of hope.
Tell us about yourself
I am a mum of three, a 7 year old and 4 year old twins. My family and I migrated from Shanghai, China when I was 8 so I often feel caught between the traditional values of Asian culture and the happy-go-lucky vibe of being Australian.
One thing the two cultures did have in common was the love of food, and that's partly why I became a dietitian. Before children, I worked in the field of international development, mostly in the Asia and Pacific region. My work was predominately at the United Nations, as a public health nutritionist specialising in maternal and child health. I've lived and worked in Nepal, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Papua New Guinea.
My eldest was born in Cambodia, where I met my husband. After over a decade of expat life, we decided to permanently move back to Melbourne where we had the twins. Now, I work in research at the Burnet Institute in the international health context and I'm embarking on a PhD later this year. In my 'spare time', I love to read, go on mini-vacays (by myself. Yes, you read it correctly, no kids or partners allowed), having a long bath and listening to audiobooks.
Why did you choose to volunteer with PANDA?
I wanted to volunteer with PANDA because the helpline supported me when I was unwell. It had helped me so much when I was sick. I wanted to share my own experiences and raise the awareness of perinatal depression, particularly with those from a non-English speaking background. Given my work experience in public health, it seemed like a natural thing to do.
What has been your proudest achievement since becoming a Community Champion?
It would most likely be the Pregnancy and Baby expo in Melbourne, where I did the 'Good Enough Parenting' presentation. I felt really proud to speak under the umbrella of PANDA at such a big event with a captive audience. And my kids watched too, which was a bonus - they had no idea what I was doing but were promised a YouTube video (the Good Enough Parenting clip).
What is your most favourite activity to do with your family?
Our favourite place in Victoria is the Redwood Forest in Warburton. We love walking among the tall trees, building giant bird nests out of fallen branches and wading in the creek that runs along the edge of the forest. It's our happy place and if we need to take a break from the busy-ness of routine activities, we go there and just hang out with the trees for a few hours. It fills our hearts and humbles us.
Finally, if you had to describe yourself as an animal, which one would it be?
We did this recently as a fun Zoom activity at work where we had a picture of an animal that we felt most represents us as our background. I chose a Chinese Fire Phoenix, it is this beautiful elusive bird that looks like a fantasy. It's not actually an animal I would identify myself with though, it was just really pretty and made a nice background. My actual animal would most likely be a pig, I was born in the Year of the Pig, I would eat anything and I love a good mud mask.
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