Heroes come in so many shapes and forms — meet one of those heroes, Nadine Muller
NAME: Nadine Muller
AGE: 29
SUBURB: Coomera
JOB TITLE: Nursing Officer with the Royal Australian Air Force and Australian Defence Force
Nadine Muller has been serving Australia for eleven years. Formally a non-commissioned officer to the rank of Corporal, and from 2012, upon completion of her Nursing Science degree, she commissioned to Nursing Officer (Air Force).
“It goes without saying, I’m wholeheartedly proud to serve this great country of ours,” Nadine says.
“Through my time served I have travelled to just about every continent on the globe and seen the highest of status societies to the lowest of low socio-economic and countries of ruin, destruction and despair.
“I was one of the aircrew who went on an extensive overseas tasking which covered nine countries across the African continent with the then Governor General of Australia the HON Quentin Bryce, and wow what an experience that was.”
Nadine’s time in the military has been filled with great moments and even greater people.
“It’s the people you get to do it alongside, through the good, through the bad, through the triumphs, and through the challenges, it’s your work mates that truly make the difference,” she says.
Mind numbing but also heart filling moments happen often too, and Nadine says these moments make hers, and other nurses, duty totally worth it.
“We are here because we want to make a difference, no matter how big or small, and that is something that makes me super proud to be a nurse, and ever so proud to be one that serves in our armed forces too,” she says.
“The job is often complicated; it is intricate, the skill sets are wide and complex in nature but sometimes amongst all the clinical skills that emergency nurses use on a daily basis, some of the most important things will be to comfort, to reassure, to hold a hand, to stand by a family member and to be a supportive presence so people don’t feel alone on what can often be the worst day of their life.
“The role is demanding and unpredictable to the say the least. Emergency nurses and military nurses can be and are exposed to very traumatic situations. I know my professional, mental and physical capabilities are tested and that’s why it’s important to have an outlet.”
For Nadine, her outlet is keeping fit, healthy and having a holistic approach to overall wellness, and this has been even more important to her since becoming a mother.
“Fitness is at the forefront of what I do professionally, and since becoming a mother, my true passion for health and fitness reached new heights,” she says.
“I saw the strength and tenacity of the human body through pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum which allowed me to wholeheartedly appreciate just how remarkable the human body is.”
Aside from her full-time career with our Armed Forces, Nadine is also an accredited Personal Trainer, Certified in Advanced Nutrition, F45 Group Fitness Instructor/Coach, Sponsored Athlete and Online Coaching and Mentor.
She does wear a lot of hats, but she says her most rewarding job of all is being mum to her three-year-old son Madden and devoted wife to my husband, Dane.
“First and foremost, I’m a mum. Because of motherhood, I’m now more driven, organised, motivated, accepting, patient, focused, realistic and resilient,” she says.
“As mothers we move mountains like it’s nothing, we raise families, we tutor little developing minds everyday, we feed, cook, clean, and keep the cogs turning in day-to-day life all while being individuals and maintaining our professions at the same time.
“I’m super–proud of the mum I am now, the mum I’m continuing to become in the future and the strong-willed me I continue to be everyday — I apply that to every facet of my life, whether at work or at play.”
One of Nadine’s toughest career moments to date was being away with the military for four and a half months this year while her child was still so young, but her husband held the fort for them.
“He did a remarkable job raising our child in my absence,” she says.
“It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do; the emotional tug of being away from family was a tough thing to bare on a daily basis, but we got through it, we survived, and it was with our strong bond as a family unit as well as my ‘can’t knock me down’ attitude.
Family is the thing that gets Nadine through work and life challenges and keeps her fuelled with drive to persist in any situation.
“Any tough day, whether it be personally or professionally, my family are the true pinnacle of my strength, resilience and tenacity. Plus, there is nothing more motivating than aspiring to be the best version of myself so I can be the best role model for my child too,” she says.
While Nadine is without a doubt a hero herself, her family are the people she looks up to. Her father’s side were mainly army people and her mother was in policing, her grandma was a nurse in the military and her brother was in the Royal Australian Army and is now in the Australian Federal Police.
She was raised knowing the importance of serving others and is so very fortunate that she could build her life, and family around that.
“The military has afforded me so many wonderful opportunities, experiences and exposures that has truly been second to none. I’ve enjoyed my career and I’ve met some truly lifelong friends that I call family along the way.”
