Episode 49: When the caring doesn’t stop at the end of the workday with Renee Firth

Episode 49: When the Caring Doesn’t Stop at the End of the Workday with Renee Firth.As helping professionals and leaders, many of us spend our working lives supporting other people. But what happens when you finish work and the caring doesn’t stop there?In this episode of Not Another PD, I’m joined by Renee Firth, mental wellbeing coach, founder of ASD Mum Club and mum to a non-speaking autistic child with ADHD.Renee and I talk about the experience of being both a helping professional and a carer, and the additional load that can come with balancing caring responsibilities at work and at home.Drawing on her previous work in residential rehabilitation, Renee shares why she was intentional about not asking people to unnecessarily retell traumatic experiences, and how that work shaped the way she supports people today.We also talk about professional boundaries when you share lived experience with the people you support, moving beyond spaces that only allow us to vent, and why wellbeing needs to be something we consider throughout our everyday lives rather than waiting until we are already depleted.In this episode, we talk about:Working in a helping profession while also having caring responsibilities outside of workWhat Renee learned from supporting people experiencing crisis in residential rehabilitationWhy we don’t always need people to retell their trauma to another professionalHow lived experience can inform the way we support othersMaintaining professional boundaries when you share experiences with the people you supportWhy support spaces need to offer more than an opportunity to ventLooking after your wellbeing before you reach the point of burnoutMoving beyond occasional massages, days off and other one-off approaches to wellbeingFinding small opportunities to reset throughout the working dayWhy helping professionals and leaders need their own support tooBuilding a circle of support around yourselfWhat it means to be the leader of your own life.One of the things that really stood out to me from our conversation was Renee’s reminder that we are not meant to be doing this life alone.When you spend so much of your professional and personal life caring for other people, who is in your circle supporting you?About Renee:Renee Firth is a mental wellbeing coach for mums raising autistic children and the founder of ASD Mum Club.After working in crisis care within a residential rehabilitation service, Renee experienced burnout herself while balancing work and caring for her non-speaking autistic child with ADHD. Her own experience of rebuilding her wellbeing led her to develop the CALM Life Framework, which focuses on practical ways to support wellbeing within the life you already have.Through ASD Mum Club, Renee has created a private community for mums raising autistic children to access support, connection and practical resources.Connect with Renee:Website:https://asdmumclub.com/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/renee_asdmumclub/TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@asdmumclubYouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@renee_asdmumclubWork with Jazmin:Leadership Focus Groups:Are you an Australian-based leader in the helping professions? I’m currently running online focus groups to help shape new leadership training. Express your interest hereServicesGroup Supervision (Starting October 2026)Boundaries as Practitioners TrainingFree ResourcesJoin Jazmin’s Email CommunitySocialise with Jazmin:InstagramLinkedInFacebook WebsiteThank you so much for listening to Not Another PD. I look forward to welcoming you next week.Jazmin.