Melbourne Centre for Women's Mental Health

12/09/2026

We are thrilled to announce our third NAVI panellist for the upcoming Empowering Women Summit.

💜Esther McConnell👏
Esther is a national sales leader, endurance athlete, and passionate advocate for the idea that extraordinary achievements are possible for ordinary people willing to take the first step.
                                                                              
With more than 15 years of leadership experience across DuluxGroup, Esther has built a reputation for championing women, delivering growth, leading high-performing teams, and navigating complex commercial challenges. Throughout her career, Esther has been recognised for her ability to combine commercial excellence with people-first leadership.

Beyond the workplace, Esther is perhaps best known for an achievement that tested her physical and mental limits. In July 2017, she successfully swam the English Channel in 11 hours and 47 minutes, joining a select group of women worldwide to complete one of the world’s most demanding endurance challenges. Battling cold water, powerful currents, unpredictable conditions, and hours of relentless swimming, Esther discovered that success is often less about talent and more about discipline, resilience, preparation, and mindset.

Esther is looking forward to sharing lessons learned from chasing a seemingly impossible goal while balancing a demanding national leadership role. Through stories of determination, setbacks, support networks, and mental toughness, she explores how courage grows through action, why discipline matters more than motivation, and how ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things when they commit to a vision and keep moving forward.

Esther’s message is simple yet powerful: anything you want is possible. Be relentless. Go get it. 😉

Esther Jane Yarra Tri Club ASF Triathlon Coaching

02/09/2026

MEET OUR ENDURANCE PANEL 💜

We are delighted to introduce Karyn Fitts, one of three incredible women joining us for our NAVI panel of endurance athletes.

⭐️Karyn Fitts is an exceptional athlete and draws on three decades of endurance sport to reflect on what it can teach us about ambition, resilience and continuing to test what’s possible!

Karyn has completed two Ironmans, multiple IRONMAN 70.3s, won numerous state and national championship titles, and represented Australia on the world stage.

But her story is also one of adapting when life changes the course. Following breast cancer in 2020 and major three-level spinal fusion surgery in 2021, Karyn returned to running and to high-level competition.

✨Still curious. Still learning. Still achieving goals.✨

Karyn joins our panel Women Who Go the Distance: Stories of Courage, Endurance & Possibility to explore what endurance can teach all of us about setbacks, growth, ageing, ambition and the possibilities we continue to create for ourselves.

Join us 💜

Yarra Tri Club ASF Triathlon Coaching Karyn Fitts AusTriathlon VIC Triathlon

22/08/2026

✨💜We will celebrate 8 years of advancing women’s mental health, professional success, and values-driven leadership at Melbourne Centre for Women’s Mental Health.💜✨

The Empowering Women Summit brings together professionals, leaders, and changemakers to explore the intersection of personal growth, career advancement, and collective impact. 👏

We have an incredible lineup!

Come join us 💜

19/08/2026

Our understanding of neurodivergence in women keeps evolving. So does our approach to assessment and support. ✅

Melbourne Centre for Women’s Mental Health has been working with women for almost eight years. Over that time, we have continued to build our knowledge and expertise in neurodivergence, with a particular interest in how ADHD and Autism can present and be experienced by women.

Our assessment process has evolved with that knowledge.

We have refined the assessment tools we use, the way we conduct assessments and, importantly, the way we communicate our findings. Feedback from the women who undertake our assessments has been particularly valuable, alongside feedback from health practitioners receiving our reports.

Our approach is also informed by the growing research literature on neurodivergence in women and neuroaffirming practice. We have conducted our own research into women’s lived experiences of neurodivergence and continue to develop research in this area.

We have recently updated our assessment tools again as part of this ongoing process.

We have a limited number of appointments remaining for comprehensive ADHD and/or Autism assessments for adults aged 19+ for the remainder of 2026.

For further information or to enquire about an assessment, please contact:

Dr Sonja Skocic
[email protected]

For ongoing support, please contact:
Therapeutic Programs - Administration and Intake:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (03) 7044 6711
Monday - Friday 9AM - 5PM

13/08/2026

MEET OUR ENDURANCE PANEL 💜

We’re delighted to introduce Maria Dietrich, one of three incredible women joining us for our NAVI* panel of endurance athletes:

Women Who Go the Distance: Stories of Courage, Endurance & Possibility

“Hey, I’m Maria and my passion is trail running. The longer the distance, the better!

My love for running started as a way to escape the rigours of raising three daughters and before long it became part of my psyche; a way to test both my mind and body and achieve something for myself. Trail running takes you to some beautiful places, and lets you meet and build relationships with women from all walks of life. It also forces you to push beyond your comfort zone, to continually move forward despite any physical pain. 

In 2023 I completed my first ultramarathon in the Grampians. I felt on top of the world and ready to set my running goal higher! But one month after the race, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and soon my new goal became one just to survive. And this is where my ability to step outside my comfort zone became invaluable, as I was able to treat my cancer journey just like a ultramarathon, slow and steady, full of ups and downs. I continued to make myself walk or run each day, creating a purpose and above all protecting my mental health. 

My girlfriends and I now have a motto, ‘drink it while it’s fizzy’, meaning enjoy today what you may not be able to do tomorrow. I take this saying into every run, extremely grateful to be able to be still doing something I love and proving that we are all capable of extraordinary things.”

At the Summit, Maria will join two other extraordinary endurance athletes to talk about courage, setbacks, possibility and what going the distance can teach us about life.

📅 Friday 23 October 2026
📍 Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, Melbourne

*NAVI ~ National Advocacy for Visibility and Inclusion for women in sport ✨💜

10/08/2026

Have you seen the line up at this years Melbourne Centre for Women's Mental Health’s Empowering Women Summit?!

Check it out:
👌 https://www.womensmentalhealth.com.au/empowering-women-inaugural-summit-2026

Register today to secure your seat at this incredible event.

⏰23rd OCTOBER, 2026
📍Wayi Djerring - Us Together (located within the Queen Victoria Womens Centre)
210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne Victoria 3000

✨PERSONAL GROWTH - PROFESSIONAL POWER - SHARED PURPOSE ✨

Women's Mental Health Centre in Melbourne

09/08/2026

don’t challenge the thought…create new expectations 💡

08/08/2026

crying over the proverbial spilled milk?… we don’t respond to events in isolation, all responses have context… here’s a little reminder …
😉

28/07/2026

📣 SPEAKER ANNOUNCEMENT 👏

We’re delighted to welcome Abby Wake to the Empowering Women Summit 2026.

In this interactive session, Abby will introduce The RAWR Method™, a body awareness framework that uses movement, expression, and reflection to help people reconnect with themselves.

Combining a short introduction with a guided embodied experience, participants will explore practical ways to cultivate greater presence, confidence, joy, and authentic connection, leaving with simple tools they can integrate into everyday life.

Abby Wake is an Embodiment Facilitator and Creator of The RAWR Method™. Drawing on a background in performance and lived experience, her work offers joy, embodiment, and expression as powerful and often overlooked pathways to healing and lasting change.

Join us! 💜💜

📅 Friday 23 October 2026
📍 Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, Melbourne

WomenSupportingWomen MelbourneEvents

ABBY

21/07/2026

✨ KEYNOTE SPEAKER ANNOUNCEMENT ✨

We are honoured to welcome Liz Gosper OAM as a keynote speaker at the Empowering Women Summit 2026.

Liz’s keynote will inspire you and move you! The session will highlight what is possible when women lead change. Together, we will explore the power of inclusive leadership, challenge us to rethink barriers to participation, and demonstrate what becomes possible when everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

An award-winning triathlon coach, educator, accomplished athlete, and nationally recognised advocate for inclusive sport, Liz was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her service to people with disability through sport.

As the founder of Inclusive Sport Training (IST), Liz has transformed opportunities for athletes with disabilities, intellectual impairments and learning difficulties, creating pathways to participation, achievement, and belonging. Under her leadership, hundreds of athletes and their families have found adventure, a sense of belonging and achievement through training and racing. Many of Liz’s IST athletes have achieved more than they thought possible, some going on to represent Australia and win medals at the Paralympics, VIRTUS Global Games, Para World Championships, and national championships.

📅 Friday 23 October 2026
📍 Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, Melbourne

Join us and be inspired by Liz’s incredible work leading change in inclusive sport!

Liz Gosper
Liz Gosper OAM
Queen Victoria Women's Centre