Personal Story Archives - oceanswims.com

Into the blue – Swimming my way through burn-out and grief

Victorian mental health nurse, Tessa Moriarty, writes about how sea swimming has helped her manage symptoms of grief post-pandemic burnout, including forging a closer bond with her husband.

Maddy Palfrey: The challenge of Rotto and the importance of ‘why’

There was much self reflection and many lessons learnt in Maddy’s quest to race the Rottnest Channel Swim.

Blind athlete, Gerrard Gosens, is pictured in the open ocean with the Gold Coast skyscrapers in the background. He is tethered to friend and guide, Marty, who is half a body length to Gerrard's right. The sky is blue, the water is clear and it looks like a beautiful day for ocean swimming.

Gerrard Gosens: Swimming blind

Rosie Ning talks with the very talented and incredibly driven Gerrard Gosens, who takes on the surf and open water swimming without vision.

The ocean as the great calibrator

Rosie Ning talks to mother of two autistic children, Irene Turner, about how ocean swimming calibrates her mindset and enables her to face her everyday challenges.

Damien Bridger: Navigating big surf after an acquired brain injury

Gold Coast-based ocean swimmer Rosie Ning chats with fellow swimmer Damien Bridger about ocean swimming with an acquired brain injury.

‘Beyond’ by Sally Mayman: A pictorial celebration of belonging on Sydney’s Northern Beaches

Sally Mayman captured her fellow swimmers and their connections with the sea during the many Covid lockdowns and turned them into a fine art book.

The ladies of Lake Burley Griffin

Canberra import Katie Price shares her story of the ‘Ladies of the Lake’ – an unlikely group of swimmers enjoying the self-anointed ‘most mocked swim venue in Australia’.

Adaptation: Swimming through fire and pandemic

For Nicole, this has been a pregnancy defined by drama and challenges, but through it all it was the call of the ocean, the Swimblers and her next swim that helped get her through.