Crew First: The Story Behind WaveWellness

Trigger warning: This article talks about issues including sexual assault, depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. If you are struggling with any of the things brought up here, please reach out to a mental health professional.

Creating an Employee Assistance Program’s (EAP) was definitely not on my bingo card for this life – well, at least I didn’t think it was.

That was until I started hearing the same comments repeated over, and over, and OVER again from my fellow crew: “I am burnt out” “I need to get rotation” “I’ve got to take a season off”… the list goes on, but the sentiment was the same. We are facing a pandemic of burnout amongst not just our seasoned crew, but even the greenies coming in and expecting more support from a high-performance industry.

So why me? Well, why not?!

Starting at the age of 17, I have more than a decade of experience of life onboard, but 4 years in, I hit a catastrophic roadblock.

I had been sexually assaulted by a crew member in my first year of yachting, and I buried that deep and carried on living my “best life” - you all know the drill: Instagram posts (actually, Facebook albums back then) of Caribbean beaches, rosé lunches, swimming in crystal clear water and travelling the globe

From the outside: THIS was living. The reality? I was slowly losing myself to a creeping depression and crippling anxiety.

I chose to ignore it all until I couldn’t any longer. We were halfway through an isolated season in a remote cruising area, crew politics were tense, and friends and family were a long way from reach (Pre-Starlink “offshore” really did mean “out of touch”).

By the time we made it back to the Med, I was a shell of my former, bubbly, lighthearted self - and there was no other option than to go home to NZ and heal.

Life on land brought perspective

After 4 years back on Kiwi soil, earning what a work-life balance was, working in marina management for a company that provided employee benefits such as mental health care, I turned my attention back to the yachting industry again and jumped back into it.

The difference? This time I was much better equipped to deal with the highs and lows than before.

But, although I had my own toolbox of skills to get through the tougher days, I noticed that my friends around me were battling. Without open wellbeing conversations on board, and lacking the support from management, the only way anyone seemed to cope with raising the issues of burnout or mental health issues was to quit - only to leave the next crew member in the same position in 6 months.

The idea that underpins WaveWellness is not a new concept; companies around the world have been providing their employees with EAP’s for decades - think Google and its famous beanbags and table tennis tables in its offices, Microsoft’s free lunches and Apple’s onsite wellness centres.

Nowadays, it is commonplace for corporate employers to provide an EAP. In fact, current stats in the UK estimate over 70% of businesses utilise an EAP service.

But somehow, yachting hasn’t clicked onto this yet, despite the fact that we literally LIVE in our workplace, work 7 days a week, and in some cases, only get 40 days of leave in a year.

The writing is on the wall

According to a study we completed in 2024 of 180 crew members:

• 94% rated mental health as “extremely important” to them

• 90%+ said they have experienced poor mental health while onboard

• Most cited causes including lack of time off, toxic leadership, and a need for more than just lip service

Crew need support they can actually feel.

The WaveWellness difference

WaveWellness was borne out of necessity, care, and a deep understanding of how things work in our industry.

Because of this, the wellbeing professionals we choose to work with around the globe are all intrinsically involved in the industry - most of them ex-crew - people who understand how to guide you through the curveballs that life at sea can throw at you.

Our core pillars of providing support for physical, mental, and financial wellbeing are what I have shaped the whole “why” behind this platform, and we are working with the leading voices in all of these areas, including nutritionists, financial advisors, psychotherapists and personal trainers, among other assets such as ClassPass and Breethe.

This isn’t about just “seeing a therapist”

or waiting to provide the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff; it's about considering how the food we give crew can impact their health, how understanding the financial implications of their tax jurisdiction can impact their mindset when they turn up for their watch, and it's about providing space for crew to seek help without fear of judgement or repercussions.

Want to know more?

If you are interested in knowing more about WaveWellness, please visit www.wavewellnesss.com or email me at hello@wavewellnesss.com and I will be glad to assist you with finding the right solution for your crew.