
CONTENT WARNING: This post deals with domestic violence and depression and may be triggering for some readers.
To most Australians, actress Rebecca Gibney is instantly recognisable as everyone’s favourite “cool mum” Julie Rafter from beloved television drama Packed to the Rafters.
The New Zealand-born actress is one Australia’s most appreciated talents, whose warmth both on and off the telly has made her a household name and enduring screen presence.
But life hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the 54-year-old.
Sitting down with Andrew Denton on tonight’s episode of Interview, the mother-of-one – who lives in Dunedin, New Zealand with her husband of 19 years Richard Bell and 15-year-old son Zac – spoke about her previous struggles with mental health, and how a nervous breakdown in her early 30s forced her to address her difficult upbringing in a family of domestic violence.
It’s an issue she feels passionate about discussing to aid those in a similar situation, and ultimately break the stigma surrounding mental health.
Watch a snippet from Rebecca’s chat with Andrew below. Post continues after.
“I think it’s so important that we talk about it now,” she told Andrew Denton.
“Life is a struggle. If we don’t talk about it and don’t share it then there are going to be people out there struggling the way I did, and I know what it’s like to be in that pit. It’s a horrible place to be.”
Raised in a family of six with a barely present father who had “a lot of issues”, Rebecca said she spent years bottling up the feelings that stemmed from her childhood.
“No one would know that we were being raised in a family of domestic violence,” she wrote in an Instagram post from 2017, touching on the isolation of coming from a family of domestic violence. How from the outside looking in, things can often appear normal, with the victims suffering in silence.
Top Comments
Thank you for sharing your story. It is very brave to be open about where you come from and it is so important for people who are living or have lived with the shame of family violence but pretending it is all fine to the outside world. It’s so hard being the kid in the firing line thinking it is all happening because you are bad and it isn’t until we are adults that we can see our abuser/s as the broken and sad people that they are. I chose forgiveness too and it has helped me be a better parent. Forgiveness is not possible for everyone’s situation and that’s ok too. My advice to anyone struggling with their childhood “crap” would be to get professional counselling to help you to move through life without your past affecting your present or future.