Buddy Spotlight #1 : Meet Margot in Gold Coast, Australia.

From Follower to Creator of My Own Journey

Before moving to Australia, I was living the city life in downtown Brussels, shared a flat with friends, rode my bike every morning to work and was in a relationship for over a year. A few months earlier I lost my mother to cancer and everything around me felt so uncertain. I had a strong desire to build something new although knowing I first had to rebuild myself. When my partner was offered a job in Australia, I did not hesitate for a second. I thought it would be an incredible experience, a different way to learn about myself, to grow, maybe even to heal from past wounds that I never took the time to address properly. Without really knowing it, I boarded a plane for a new life.

I can still remember the excitement of the first days: the Australian beaches, the amazing weather, the laid-back lifestyle, the surf, the morning light, etc. I had already travelled quite a bit in my early twenties, but this time was different. I was not going alone, I wasn’t sleeping in hostel dorms, I wasn’t hopping from one place to another every week, and most importantly, I could not imagine how deeply this journey would transform me.

Gradually, reality began to settle in. I realised I was dependent on my partner, financially and administratively. I had always been independent, and suddenly I could feel that autonomy slipping away, almost without noticing. Finding a job in my field was nearly impossible without local qualifications. So I took small jobs as a nanny or waitress and tried to keep smiling. But inside, I was slowly fading. I watched my partner evolve, grow and flourish while I felt myself shrinking, torn between admiration and frustration. Australia fascinated me with its energy and healthy lifestyle, but I felt like a background character in my own story. Over time, the distance began to weigh on me. The distance from my family and friends, but mostly the one I had created within myself. I was not the same anymore. I had lost my bearings, my spark, my joy.

Then came a trip back to Belgium, like an emotional earthquake. Everything I had avoided suddenly resurfaced: pain, anger, grief, fear. That was the moment everything collapsed. Our relationship, my certainties, my illusions. A breakup followed, painful but necessary. A few months later, I booked a one-way ticket to Indonesia. I didn’t really know what I was looking for, but I knew I needed to go. That journey became a rebirth. Alone, far from everything familiar, I dove into silence, nature and self-reflection. I practiced breathwork, Reiki and attended a five-day silent retreat. Little by little, a forgotten light began to return: the light of my own presence. There, I realized that I no longer wanted to endure my life or my choices.

I was responsible for my happiness as much as for my pain: it was time to take my place, to create, act, live.

That is also where the seed of my new project began to grow. I was already trained in family and relationship sciences, but I wanted to go further and train as a couples coach, to support those who, like me, were navigating the tension between love, uprooting and the search for meaning. I wanted to create a safe space for French-speaking expat couples who often feel isolated, caught between two cultures and two emotional worlds. So I trained, built my website and carefully shaped every word, every image, every intention.

In April 2025, I returned to Australia. Different. Stronger. More aligned. I was no longer the one who followed. I was the one who chose. Together, my partner and I decided to give our relationship another chance, this time with new awareness, more peace and more intention. We learned to listen, to reconnect, without losing ourselves. Today, I feel at home, grounded in this Australian land that has challenged me, shaped me and taught me so much. Every morning, I wake up with a sense of purpose: to support, to guide, to share what I have learned. Because in truth, expatriation is so much more than a change of country. It is an inner journey, a shedding, a rebuilding. A call to return to what truly matters, to who we are beneath it all. And that is the path I have walked, step by step, the path I now offer to others walking the same road: the path of love, of partnership and of rediscovering oneself.

How I can help you as your buddy

Feeling stretched between “here” and “home”? As your buddy, I offer calm, practical support for individuals and couples: I listen without judgment, translate lived experience into clear next steps, and help you rebuild everyday anchors (health, routines, community).

For couples, I facilitate aligned conversations so you move from parallel stress to a shared plan; for French expats, we can switch to English if needed so everything feels natural again.

The result: less isolation, more momentum, and a sense of belonging you can feel.

I will be more than happy to support you, book online with me here.