WISE Testimonials
Michael Plunkett. Head of Safety. Kmart Group. “Absolutely one of the best programs I have participated in, highly recommend!”
Ciara Millar, Manager Suicide, Mental Health and General Investigations. Coroners Court of Victoria. “At the beginning of the eight week WISE program I was not getting enough deep sleep (approximately 20 min per night according to my FitBit), so despite sleeping for 8 hours I did not feel refreshed each morning. Since practicing each night as suggested by Sally, I am now getting approx. 1.5 hours deep sleep per night! Sally is extremely kind, gentle and engaging. She makes everyone feel welcomed and valued, and does not show any judgement – this made me feel safe in her sessions. Sally has the ability to teach tools in a practical way, ensuring learnings are transferrable to real life events. I thoroughly enjoyed the program and highly recommend Sally and Engage Health!”.
Jonathan van Rooyen. CEO, The Infrastructure Fund. “I work in a leadership capacity on a $1.7 billion Global Infrastructure Investment Fund. I recently completed the eight week WISE program run by Engage Health. The program focused on developing 3 areas critical to effective leadership: 1. Self-Awareness; 2. Authenticity; and 3 Compassion. I can say in all honesty, this program was the most effective Leadership Development Program I have been associated with during my 20-year career. Sally has an extraordinarily effective manner and understands the challenges of dealing with time-poor, highly-distracted financial services executives. I recommend the WISE program to others who are seeking to extend and differentiate themselves in a leadership capacity.”
Fortunata Maria Callipari, City of Whittlesea. “The eight week WISE program that Sally delivered at the City of Whittlesea blew my mind! i.e. my brain grew neurons and pathways that are on their way to a positive way of thinking, feeling and being. In this eight week course Sally unravels brain chemistry and demystifies the way the brain works. Looking at the various parts of the brain helped me to understand how the brain works and how it changes. I learnt practical breathing strategies and alerting the senses to mitigate the stress response. I also learnt the importance of compassion, self-care and speaking with kind words. Wise definitely contributed to my personal and professional development as I work towards the best version of myself”.
Police Department Prince William County- Co-Responder Unit “I was involved in a recent physical and mental/emotional traumatic incident. While I did not ‘consciously apply’ the tools…I truly believe from the work we have done in the WISE Program I was able to regulate my mind and body enough to get to safety, to continue to heal”.
Laima Panders, The Coroners Court of Victoria. “Sally communicates very well by explaining how the mind and body works, using a scientific foundation to back up all teachings. Sally also spends extra time with staff if they require extra information or assistance. The teachings that Sally provided were all based on strong foundations and complimented by all the wonderful information on the engage website that backs up and encourages further growth in this area. Sally has a warm and calming way that is perfect for conducting this program, she is able to connect with all people in the program”.
Gill Banez, Project Manager. APD Projects Construction.“I was inherently skeptical about the effectiveness of programs such as the WISE program. Having tried various approaches in an attempt to improve workplace management and relationships, I observed Sally’s achievements in business and as a successful athlete and was eager to learn the strategies that lead to her success. The eight week program presents strategies in an orderly and relatable way which allow immediate real world implementation right at the outset. I’ve enjoyed a renewed outlook which extends well beyond the workplace and I would recommend its implementation to any business of any kind.”
Mark Deverall. Assistant Principal, Northern Bay P-12 College, Corio. “Working in a public secondary school faces numerous challenges and difficulties. We recently had Sally facilitate WISE teacher training at our campus for all staff. This was timely towards the end of year. Overwhelmingly the staff feedback was positive in regard to feeling an immediate improved sense of wellbeing and appreciative for gaining an understanding of practice in a school setting, both from a professional perspective but also an introductory aspect for educating students. Sally was comprehensive in her explanation of the physiological reasoning behind mind and body stress and stress reduction. This was complimented with practical strategies and tools that left all staff feeling better and enabled a positive organisational morale that carried across the remainder of the year. We would highly recommend this program for schools with it showing a clear ability to improve teacher and support staff wellbeing.
Coby Rollins. Learning and Organisational Development. Department of Health and Human Services.“I am now less anxious in certain situations. I am more aware and appreciative of the small and beautiful things in life that often get overlooked. I feel calmer, more focused and more in tune with myself and what is going on around me. For me the most useful part of the course was learning the tools to be able to recognise and be more comfortable with change and the unpleasant in our lives. I would absolutely recommend this course to others (I already have!). The benefits you experience and the changes in your everyday behaviour and awareness is outstanding. Truly life changing.”
Amanda O’Donnell. Disability Support Services, Department of Health and Human Services. “I would certainly recommend the course and have found it to be a positive experience learning to recognise what I am feeling and taking steps to deal with stress. I have felt that I am better able to recognise when I am stressed at the time and take steps towards addressing it at that point in time”.
Sarah Sims. Child Protection Practitioner. Department of Health and Human Services.“Thank you very much! This course has helped a lot with my personal life. It has changed me for the better and I am extremely grateful. Thank you.”
Maree Millard. Disability Housing Advice and Assistance. Department of Health and Human Services.“I have loved this course. The kindness practice has been great. I am now kinder to myself. I have found I am sleeping so much better. When I used to try and problem solve at 3am I now breathe and return to sleep really fast. Thank you”.
Dominique Swift. Child Protection Practitioner. Department of Health and Human Services. “This was an invaluable experience provided by excellent practitioners. I would highly recommend to everyone to adapt as a basic wellbeing measure”.
Jamie Camamile. Disability Support Services. Department of Health and Human Services. This course is fantastic for many different reasons and can be relatable to anyone. This course achieved amazing results for me in my ability to be aware of myself and those around me. There is no-one that wouldn’t benefit from taking the time to complete this course”.
WISE Participant, Toll Group “Just a quick note to say thank you for an amazing program. I must admit, my mind was a little closed to this program prior to starting but I have to say that I have completely changed my opinion now, this is great and you present in a very engaging way”.
WISE Participant, Toll Group “Resilience isn’t fixed; it’s a skill the brain can build. Knowing that our stress responses are learned habits that can be rewired through small, consistent practices gave me a far more hopeful way to support both my own wellbeing and my team’s.”
WISE Testimonials- Victoria Police
“Throughout society there are many negative issues pushing people towards dark places, and the WISE program is one bit of protection that somewhat pushes back. You should know that your efforts have and will continue to help some members dealing with difficult and stressful situations, at their work and in their home lives. You are making the lives of many people better, which will be having a ripple effect, improving each of those persons circle of family, work and life. My wife has recently commented to me that i am more positive and nicer to be around, which I at least partly credit to my increased awareness through your sessions. Literally, you are making the world a better place”.
“This was a great course and I will definitely be recommending this to my team. I am aware of members who are suffering with mental health concerns in my workplace. This course will be great in assisting them with coping mechanisms (there are so many options) without causing further trauma as has happened with previous courses. Thank you”.
“The eight week WISE program has deepened my understanding of the physiological responses associated with stress and anxiety and shown me that it is possible to not only rewire the brain, but also bring about physiological changes to it. The guided practices have allowed me to become more aware of thoughts, emotions and senses and have given me the opportunity to observe their impact, both positive and negative, on me. I am now more conscious of what I am experiencing and know that I have the capacity and tools to influence how I react or respond. My sincere thanks to you for the opportunity to participate in this program and also for the gentle, compassionate and insightful way you delivered it”.
“A personal note to let you know how wonderful and impactful the last eight weeks have been with you. Transformative really. Having received counselling in the past for trauma, the experience has been really hit and miss. This program has been a light bulb moment for me as whilst counsellors offer coping strategies to deal with anxiety or depression, the part that has always been missing has been the deeper understanding of why our brains do what they do. This program has completed the jigsaw puzzle for me and I feel like I’m a better human for it in my relationships with friends, colleagues and family. I feel like in some small way, I have been able to help others. You are an extraordinary and gifted person with so much knowledge, skill and experience and most importantly care in your craft and an amazing educator. I’ve absolutely loved listening to your sessions. Once again thank you for what you do. I am not sure you realise just how special you are and the multiplying effect of goodness you have spread”.
“It was great to see a course like WISE this put out there for Victoria Police. Thanks Sally and good luck with future courses, hopefully get a big uptake and reduce the impact policing has on our lives as a job”.
“Thank you again for last night’s session. I also had an ‘a-ha’ moment last night which probably explained my moods a few months ago. Getting heaps out of these sessions and appreciate your time and effort”.
“My scores here are likely lower than at the start so sorry if this skews the results. Some other factors totally unrelated to the program have affected me in the second half. What I must say is that without this program in the last 4 weeks I would have struggled much more than I have. My testimonial is that this program has kept me going right when I really needed all of these techniques reinforced. The value has been incredibly high for me and the scores do not reflect that value in my case”.
“I really valued this program! I have never completed a Mental Health/Wellbeing program before and I not only feel accomplished, but I have altered my perception on certain things and believe I now have the tools to handle stress/ trauma/ negative feelings in a controlled manner. Thank you Sally”.
“Thank you Sally for allowing me to attend the WISE program. Although I only attended half, they were extremely helpful. I wish I was able to attend them all. I find it hard to be motivated but after attending a few sessions of this program, I reached out to my GP RE: my mental health and got a couple of referrals to help me out which I had been putting off for some time. The breathing techniques used to make me feel like I couldn’t breathe but mixing that with the mind clearing techniques you’ve taught have made me be able to finally use breathing techniques. Thank you”.
“I have learnt and accepted that it’s okay not to be okay and allowing myself to have a break and not feel guilty. I believe I am a compassionate person; I just need to learn to apply this compassion to myself”.
“Used the S.T.O.P principle…Conflict avoided. Seriously though a couple of box breaths, and anger has pretty much gone!”
“A great program, very educational and actually useful to be applied personally and when supervising the troops”.
“I found the secondary arrow tool very impactful. I often find myself ruminating when things get wrong and I can literally ruin a day over something minor. Now I try my best to make distance and peace with my emotions so I can get on with my day”.
