She first came into the public domain more than a decade ago as a contributing author to the Australian Autism Handbook (2008). Drawing from her experience as a mother of a child with autism and her extensive research on the subject, she delivered a guide for parents about how to avoid burn out and subsequently improve family life with children living with ASD.
In 2010 Justine underwent surgery for stress urinary incontinence after delivering 2 huge healthy boys and was implanted with transvaginal mesh. Little did she know that this ‘gold standard procedure’ was to change her life forever. Following years of ‘mystery’ illnesses and multiple medical referrals that pointed to a psychiatric assessment; she was still none the wiser. Over the years her incontinence worsened, and in an effort to regain some element of control over her failing body and relentless health issues, Justine returned to her original surgeon to learn that she was part of the international mesh disaster.
Following years of ‘mystery’ illnesses and multiple medical referrals that pointed to psychiatric assessment she was still none the wiser.
Over the years her incontinence worsened, and in an effort to regain some element of control over her failing body and relentless health issues, Justine returned to her original surgeon to learn that she was part of the international mesh disaster.
After a subsequent suicide attempt after being hit with the odds the Australian surgeon gave her, Justine researched and found the world expert in mesh removal in St Louis, USA. Using her life savings, she travelled alone from her home in Bali to undergo a complex long surgery in the United States. There was just eight weeks from diagnosis to surgery, from the time Justine realised mesh was slowly killing her and time was precious after seven years of chronic pain and illness.
The American surgeon discovered her urethra had been skewered in several places by the mesh, which had also embedded itself into her bladder and her pelvis was rotting.
After mesh removal surgery, Justine continued to struggle with medical PTSD, so embarked on a journey of self-healing using meditation, fasting and non-medical therapies. She is now free of thyroid disease, pre-diabetes and other autoimmune conditions that only occurred after mesh implant surgery.
Justine went on to co-found the registered charity Mesh Injured Australia Inc. in 2018 – a support group that also campaigns for improved services for mesh injured people.
She is an in-demand public speaker about chronic pain and a broad range of health consumer issues. Several books are being written about her experience and life story and she is the go-to spokesperson about surgical mesh implants and chronic pain in its many forms.