Humans of UniSA

Everyone has a story. Humans of UniSA is a deep dive into the lives of our fellow students to unravel the threads of their personal history, quiet ambitions, and their hopes, worries and joys. Take a fleeting glance into the vivid lives we pass by each day in the hallways and classrooms of UniSA.

Are you comfortable in there or do you want to sit in the bean bag couch? Bean bag couch. Cool. So, my name is Lucy and I’m in my fourth year of exercise physiology, at the moment.

So… I’m very, very squeamish. Yeah. I used to watch cartoon videos of surgery sometimes and that would make me, like, see stars. And in first year uni in anatomy, you have to look at cadavers and I didn’t really fully understand that… So the first couple of times it was okay and they’d sort of given us a pep talk saying ‘you don’t actually have to go in’ but everyone was going in, so I didn’t want to be the loser who didn’t but oh I should’ve been. And then on my third time going in, um, I walked in with my lab coat and I didn’t have any friends in my anatomy class as well and then we’re looking at the leg with the foot which, again, it was okay. It was fine. It was all fine until the lady goes ‘…and look at what this muscle does’ and she tugged on the muscle and it made the foot, like, flex and I went ‘oh, okay’ and I felt a bit hot. Temperature started going up and you know they’d said, ‘the temperature’s set at a cool, like, 15 degrees, so you shouldn’t be getting hot in there.’ But I’m getting a bit hot and I was just like, ‘look away for a minute, you’re only in here for another five minutes.’ So I looked to the corner of the room and there’s a fucking head. There is a head in the corner, just looking back at me and I left the room and never went back in but I still passed.

So many. You know this too. They all stem from each other. There’s little parts that stem from this but my biggest fear is flying. I hate it and I’m okay—actually, no I’m not. I hate flying in itself, but I think that stems from tight spaces being trapped and the heights—it’s just a death trap. You shouldn’t fly. You just shouldn’t fly. And I think I woke up to that in about year five because I was always fine with flying until I was old enough to realise that you know in the movies where they crash in the ocean and they gently land and you know all the slides poof out and everyone jumps out I remember looking at mum and being like ‘yeah look but at least you land on water’ and mums like ‘landing on water from this height is like concrete’ and that just like woke me up to the real world. And that was it. Childhood gone. Psychologists come at me.

Oh.. my advice to 14-year-old Lucy? I think I’d probably just tell her to relax a little bit. Like I tell myself to relax now anyway but… probably to not care what everyone thinks quite so much. Because you would know we were always the crazy ones in school and that was so much fun. But I think but sort of from 14, when I went to high school, I got very cautious about what I said when I wasn’t with my friends. I wish I had been a bit more independent outside my friendship group then. Put myself out there a little bit more. Because I do that a bit more now and that was what uni was good for. It’s so much easier. And I reckon that’s from having a job as well. In customer service, you have to speak to strangers every day.

Biggest dream. I’m one of those people who don’t think super, super far into the future or anything too crazy but my dream next year is to have either a full-time job in the EP field or at least working three days at a good EP job that I enjoy and then just staying at Ginger’s for a little bit longer. I think that’s more realistic than a full-time job straight out, but I really want to be in an EP job that I really like—and learning. Something that I can learn from as well. I don’t want to somewhere where I’m forced to be super, super independent. Because I think in your first few years it’s really important to be able to have the mentors as well so I don’t learn it all the wrong way. Although UniSA has given me a fantastic foundation. Thankyou UniSA. Now let me pass with honours. Please.

So, my research team and I are looking at chronic fatigue syndrome. We are sort of doing it in two parts. We’ve made a survey that we gave out to health professionals who treat people living with MECFS and we got really good responses on that. Everyone was so lovely. So what we are trying to see is whether their perceptions on physical activity and exercise is beneficial or harmful and why. And sort of part of that is what do you believe makes a source trustworthy and stuff. In the area, it’s really sad because there is so much misinformation out there that everyone is confused and people are told the wrong things so it’s just a cycle of mistrust. We want to take a step back and publish this that way future research into chronic fatigue can stem from it and work out what direction it needs to go in and what needs to be fixed.

Ugh, Folklore. Gosh, love it. I think, genuinely, it could be my favourite album. That’s hard because Lover was— there’s just so many good ones. My new favourite track at the moment—it changes every week and exile will always be the absolute fave—but I’m loving peace. The first listen I was like ‘meh it’s good’ but now it’s cool. And cardigan and betty were just like old, throwback Taylor Swift. Literally, whenever I get into the car its just Taylor Swift shuffle. Nah, it’s actually the best album ever and that’s not even a big call. That’s FACTS—and leave that on there. That’s fact. Come at me. Taylor Swift is talented. She didn’t deserve what she got. Yeah, I’m changing my honour thesis: ‘How Taylor Swift can benefit from exercise physiology.’ I wish.

Interview and Photography Anna Day

Lucy Shannon

Edition 36 | 2020

Christopher Filosi

Bachelor of Design (Communication Design)

Yeah, it is nice to be back at university, it’s good. In person. Um, alright what do you want to know? I’ll answer anything.

So I started my studies and professional life as an accountant which is quite a bit different than communication design. I was always very good at academic stuff at school, especially accounting, and so I got a job straight out of high school... so it was my first day of University, and I was not at University because it was also the first day of my job! And so, from then on it was like suit and tie three days a week at the accounting firm and then two days pretending to do uni work... and you know, I really wouldn’t, and then I’d work fulltime in the holidays and that just carried on for my entire degree. So, throughout that process, I was always reassured by successes that I had. You know, I got a job and in my first year of commerce I did really well, and everything was telling me that I was on the right path until I finished my degree and I was working fulltime and there wasn’t that next year of university—just the next forty years of my career in front of me, that I really began to think about what I wanted to do with my life. Yeah, absolutely it was a bit dry! Yeah I think it’s a very practical degree, or a very practical field, and I never really wanted to be an accountant but I saw it as a jumping-off point into other areas of my life, like working in finance at larger corporations but yeah I got to the point where I realised I didn’t want to spend forty to eighty hours a week doing the work necessary to get to that next stage of my career.

Yeah so I never really considered design as a path at all in my life, it’s not like I got into design in high school, but I guess I was always very aesthetically focussed as a person... yeah, my own aesthetic but even appreciating art and beauty and design. From a very young age I remember arguing with my parents over what clothes they were going to put me in because I wanted to choose the outfit, not them, you know. And so there were always these hints throughout that I was more creative than I gave myself credit for, and it was also again not the thing that you did if you were so academically inclined... all of the reassurance that I got was always pushing me down a professional path, rather than something in a creative field, and it wasn’t until I had my first relationship and you know, fell in and out of love and lived life a little bit that I really understood what it was that I wanted with my life, and then yeah gave it a go. Just on a whim I applied, got accepted to the degree and so then I was like, here we are, here we go!

No... well we can talk about it... there’s not much to speak about at the moment, but yeah I don’t know, I’m a very romantic person I guess, but I don’t, I don’t... I don’t know how... it’s not... I don’t know. I don’t like, date people. I don’t have any of the dating apps, you know, so it has to be quite serendipitous for me to meet someone and for us both to be interested in one another. Yeah, I never really sort of fit in as an accountant, not that I was bad, I was always more creative you know? I had long hair and the way that I wore my suit was a little bit different... and I feel even the same in design where it’s just like I may be a bit more professional perhaps in the way that I speak or... what was that? Refined? Thank you! Uh and so yeah it is a bit different where I don’t really feel myself as being fully in one category, but it’s interesting because I feel I can speak two languages—I can speak to someone in a suit and say the words that they want to hear and be able to understand the jargon that they’re throwing at me, but I can also do the same in a creative context. Is it? Yeah well, I hope it’s going to be competitive when I’m trying to find a job at the end of the year!

I’m very anxious about finding work at the end of the year. I think another reason for my anxiety is that I have very high standards. Like, I expect a lot of myself and also for myself and so I don’t necessarily want to accept ‘a job’—I would like the job to fulfil me in a deeper way... and that’s more so what I’m concerned about—how easy, or how long will it take me to find that? Yeah, serendipity. Something will work out.

My Italian background? Yeah, I think it’s both a big and a small part of my existence. Like, I think part of the reason that I was so professionally focussed early on comes from the fact that my parents grew up in an immigrant household and therefore have a certain level of pragmatism that I find is common with my friends whose parents also grew up with similar backgrounds. Also, where we’re from in Italy is not usually the place where people came from, you know, we’re from Northern Italy whereas most of the people come from the south, so there’s like a different culture which is a bit more refined, or a bit more urban and so there isn’t as much of the err... ‘woggy wog’ sort of thing in my background... um but no I grew up in Australia like all of my friends are... well I would consider myself an Australian. Yeah, it’s an interesting question. Yeah, I don’t know how well I answered.

For next year? I want to be working on something I’m passionate about, but that I’m also learning a lot from. Even though I’m coming to the end of my degree at the end of this semester, I still feel like a student and I think I will still feel like that for a number of years into any sort of career, and so what I would want is to be in a position where I can absorb as much as I possibly can so that I can contribute later.

Interview and Photography Emma Horner

What? I hate that question so much—like, what do you want to know? Be more Pacific Ocean... Man, I hate talking about myself. Just try make me look good and not like a dick. Okay. Continue.

Why am I studying psychology? Mostly for the money. No, I’m kidding. I’m kidding… Coming from a male perspective, mental health and the way mental health is viewed, it’s like very interesting how, you know, men aren’t allowed to talk about their emotions and stuff. A lot of what I went through with my mental health journey, if I was just able to talk about it, and there wasn’t so much stigma surrounding it, it would have been a lot easier. And like, possibly opened some doors that were just slam closed when I was really struggling. So, I think a lot of the reason I’m doing it is because I want to change that perspective and start to normalise conversations around mental health. But also, obviously, the money and prestige play a part in it a little, but mostly to help people.

It’s like 80% to help people and 20% like, ‘150K a year doesn’t sound too bad’. But that’s if I get into Masters... So really, it’s to help people. It’s just fun making jokes— that are semi-true. Dot. Dot. Dot. Unless?

How did you know I went to a boy’s school? Yeah nah, I only went there for three years, so, I don’t think the culture really impacted me much. But like, that was probably the peak of the not so good stuff. I think it had accumulated by that point. I grew up in a country town, multiple country towns, so I think that played a pretty big part in it all. The idea of mental health in country towns is pretty much non-existent… When I was there anyway.

Do you really want to do the COVID question? Oh, alright. Essentially, most faculties at UniSA have gone back to in-person tutes except psychology—for some unknown reason… So, we’re disputing it and hoping to get some sort of answers and/or get it put back in-person… Yeah, that’s probably all I’m going to say on that… Like fuck. I’m paying money to do university in-person. I’m supposed to be on exchange in Canada and I’m not. I’m fucking here, doing [uni], through Zoom.

Am I keeping busy? Oh, how? I’m an SANFL umpire. So, umpiring league footy. I also coach the SANFLW boundary umpires… Um, I climb stuff. Yep, there you go. That’s a big one. I climb up walls in my spare time… Yeah, bouldering. Where? ABC. Adelaide’s Bouldering Club. Hashtag promotion. Hashtag pay me. Nah, it’s great gym if anyone wants to start bouldering and climbing up walls… Running! Yes, I run! Because it’s good for your mental and physical well-being.

That’s pretty much it... Oh, I do photography as well. And I write poetry. My poetry’s not good though… It’s like, just a great way to express your emotions without having to directly address them. That’s why I do it because I’m terrible at addressing my emotions. I was terrible. I’m getting better. Maybe…

For me to sit down right now and be like, ‘Nina, this is how I feel,’ it’s super hard. But you also don’t want to ruminate on how you feel because that leads you down a very dark path. So, if you have a creative outlet, such as writing or photography, it allows you to express those emotions without having to sit there and think about the emotions. So, I just sit down and write, and then I’ll read it and I’ll be like, ‘Wow, that’s how I feel. Okay.’ I think the value of having creative outlets are wildly underestimated. Especially from a male perspective—it’s very much frowned upon to do anything that’s mildly feminine. Because we are men! And men don’t cry!

Batyr runs a thing called Being Herd… It’s essentially a program for young people to share their stories of lived mental ill-health experience. So, I did a two-day workshop where you sit down with a bunch of people and write your story. But mine was really weird... It was run with only men. Yeah, no. On purpose… It felt very— for lack of a better word—empowering. Seeing men talk about stuff like this, gathered together to change the stigma around mental health. It was super weird because of the social stigma of men not opening up to each other… It was also online because of the pandemic, which kind of sucked. I’m a very face-to-face person… it would’ve been better to be able to hug everyone. But it was still a really cool experience.

We’re doing more speaker development stuff, so hopefully, I’ll be able to share my mental health journey with a whole crowd of people. I’m actually terrified of public speaking. But everyone knows the best way to get better at public speaking is to speak about a very very vulnerable subject in front of hundreds of people. That’s obviously the best idea…

For sure, I think if we’re able to listen to people’s stories and see things from other perspectives, it allows us to understand them… their world and their community better. And therefore, make better choices on the basis of that rather than just our own opinions and beliefs.

Last year in uni, I learnt about white privilege and the extent that effects, well, everything... I think I knew about it before, but I didn’t understand it… I did an Indigenous studies course that, essentially, teaches you the “actual” history of Australia. And there were a lot of things I didn’t know… It was very—I don’t want to say confronting—just very much a, ‘here’s everything you ever knew, but also, here’s what it all actually means,’ type experience... I think, exploring both sides—all sides—of a story is super important. Because if we don’t do that, we’ll never move forward.

Will Carter Bachelor of Psychology (Counselling and Interpersonal Skills)