KIC co-founder Laura Henshaw knows what it's like to deal with anxiety. Photo / Supplied
She's the CEO and co-founder of health and fitness app Keep It Cleaner, an author and influencer.
But behind the scenes, Laura Henshaw knows all too well what it's like to battle anxiety.
"I kept it to myself for a while," she tells the Herald.
Listen to Laura's co-founder Steph Claire Smith on the NZ Herald's parenting podcast, One Day You'll Thank Me
"The reason I didn't speak about it was because I was worried that people in our team might see it, or the community would see it.
"I think I just got in my own head and thought, 'maybe if I talk about this, people won't think that I'm inspirational and I won't motivate them or I won't be someone that they look up to because I'm flawed'. Or they might think, 'how can she run a company'?"
But when she voiced those fears, she felt "such a relief".
"No one thought I was less than or not worthy of having the job that I have. I've spoken to so many people that also have anxious thoughts and it's been so incredible to speak to people that now feel less alone," she shares.
"They might look at what I've done in my career and go, 'oh well, Laura has anxiety and that hasn't held her back'. So it's not going to hold me back."
Now whenever she worries about people's judgement, she thinks, "If I can use my platform to help one person feel less alone, then I feel like I've done my job."
Henshaw knows all too well that the wrong attitude towards fitness can have a negative impact on our mental health. In their late teens, she and KIC co-founder Steph Claire Smith both struggled with having a healthy body image.
"It was something that unfortunately we just got caught up in, from the modelling industry and from social media and thinking that the way that our bodies looked was our worth, which is not the case at all," Henshaw says.
"I was probably at my unhealthiest, because I was depriving myself, I wasn't eating enough, I was excessively exercising and my mental health was really struggling."
For Henshaw, now the most important reason to exercise is to feel good.
"It's not that I want to look a certain way. It's waking up and thinking, you know, I've actually got a really busy day today, or I might have in a meeting that I'm nervous about, and I know that if I get up and I move my body, I will be clearer.
"I can calm my mind and organise my thoughts and if I feel like something feels overwhelming, if I go for a run, more often than not when I get home, whatever it was feels like I can tackle it."
As CEO of a company, Henshaw knows how important it is to make time for herself to switch off - and being a wellness role model for thousands of people comes with its own pressures.
"If I do burn myself out, I then can't show up in the way that I want to and need to for my team and for our community as well. Some days it's harder to do than others - I definitely don't always get it right," she admits.
Like many of us, there are times when she's working long hours, eating takeaways every night and too tired to exercise. That's when she has to remind herself to "practice what I preach".
"I feel so much better when I exercise. I try to take the pressure off myself, so some weeks I'm not going to make the normal healthy choices that I would or eat as well as I usually do and move as much or look after my mental health as much," she says.
"And that's okay, but I know how good I feel when I am looking after myself, so I do try to focus back on that."
As someone who doesn't always have the time for a full self-care routine with baths and face masks and cups of tea, Henshaw's advice is to "do what you can with what you have".
"Some weeks we have time for that and that's fantastic, but then some weeks, finding five minutes is really hard. So I try to let go of the expectations on myself."
Whether it's a short guided meditation, some breathing exercises, or a quick workout to get the blood pumping, it only takes moments to pause and do something that's good for your body and for your mind, she says.
"Moving your body gives you a little bit of energy, your blood starts flowing through your body and you just feel so much more energised.
"I won't always have a full day but I will be able to find five minutes, so what can I do in those five minutes?"
If you are worried about your or someone else's mental health, the best place to get help is your GP or local mental health provider. However, if you or someone else is in danger or endangering others, call police immediately on 111.
Or if you need to talk to someone else:
Depression helpline: 0800 111 757 or text 4202
Lifeline: Call 0800 543 354 or text 4357 (HELP)
Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO)
Need to talk? Call or text 1737
Women's Refuge: Free national crisis line operates 24/7 - 0800 refuge or 0800 733 843 www.womensrefuge.org.nz
Shine, free national helpline 9am- 11pm every day - 0508 744 633 www.2shine.org.nz
It's Not Ok: Information line 0800 456 450 www.areyouok.org.nz
Shakti: Providing specialist cultural services for African, Asian and middle eastern women and their children. Crisis line 24/7 0800 742 584
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