29. Three Hard Truths from Bek Woodbine on Burnout, Nurse Culture & Ethical Aesthetics

Content warning: This episode includes discussions of alcoholism, depression, and occasional course language, which may be sensitive for some listeners.


What happens when a nurse known for looking after everyone else hits her own breaking point? For Bek Woodbine (Nurse Practitioner, host of podcast Tenderness for Nurses, and founder of a successful aesthetic clinic), it started with shaking hands and overwhelming anxiety. In a healthcare culture that rewards overwork and masks burnout with 'just one more drink,' Bek chose a different path.


Bek shares how she stepped away from clinical work, navigated anxiety and depression, and what six years of sobriety has taught her about resilience and self-leadership. She speaks openly about fatigue mismanagement in healthcare, the stigma nurses face when speaking up, and why great leadership starts with boundaries and care.


We also explore the aesthetic industry’s shift toward trends over ethics, and why Bek champions a skin first approach. This episode is for anyone who’s ever felt stretched too thin or is searching for a more sustainable way to care, for others and for themselves. 


More about Bek's Organisation of Choice, FARE (https://fare.org.au/) .
The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) is a not-for-profit organisation with a vision for an Australia free from alcohol harms – where communities are healthy and well, and where laws, policies and programs are fair, equitable and just.  


Follow Bek's podcast Tenderness For Nurses on Instagram. (  / tendernessfornurses  )


It Takes Heart is hosted by cmr CEO Sam Miklos, alongside Head of Talent and Employer Branding, Kate Coomber. 


We Care; Music by Waveney Yasso 


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