In this moving episode of What Makes You Tick?, Tatiana and Tom invite us into a conversation that is both tender and brave. Over the course of their dialogue, they weave together reflections on loss, the process of healing, and how we find meaning in the cracks of life.

From the beginning, Tatiana opens up about the rawness of grief, how it can feel like being both here and not here, and how the world insists on moving forward even when your heart doesn’t.

Tom listens with a generosity that creates space for vulnerability. He shares stories of his own challenges, the moments when he felt lost, and the practices he turned to when he needed to hold himself together.

Together, they explore themes of connection: how love continues beyond absence, how small rituals anchor us, and how the people around us can become lifelines, even when we’re fumbling. They talk about the importance of presence — of being able to say, “I don’t know,” “I’m hurting,” or “I’m scared” and how those admissions can become bridges rather than barriers.

By the close, there’s a gentle shift: not a “cure” for suffering, but a sense of companionship in it. You, the listener, are invited into that space, to sit with your own wounds, to sense that you are seen, and to carry forward with a little more softness for yourself.

What to expect in this episode:

Honest vulnerability about grief, absence, and memory

Personal stories that feel like letters to the heart

Gentle encouragement to be kind to yourself in your toughest moments

And a reminder: healing is rarely a straight path but you don’t have to walk it alone

In this episode of "What Makes You Tick," I welcome Dr. Mohammed Mustafa, an emergency medicine physician known for his advocacy and humanitarian work in Gaza, also known as the "Beast from the Middle East." The episode explores Dr. Mustafa's personal history as a Palestinian refugee, his family roots, his professional background working in Australia, and his missions as an international aid worker during the ongoing crisis in Gaza.

Dr. Mohammed Mustafa shares a deeply personal account of his time in Gaza, reflecting on the responsibilities and emotional toll of serving as both a doctor and a member of the Palestinian diaspora during an active humanitarian disaster. He provides a first-hand look at the atrocities of war, the dehumanising language and media narratives, and the daily decisions medics are forced to make under unimaginable pressure and scarcity.

The conversation spans:

Dr. Mustafa’s background and family history, growing up as a refugee, and his path to medicine.

His two missions to Gaza (in 2024 and 2025), describing the devastation witnessed, including famine, ongoing violence, deliberate targeting of civilians and medical infrastructure, and mass casualty management.

The psychological and physical toll on medics, with Dr. Mustafa recounting patients’ stories, especially children’s, and the impossibility of providing adequate care with limited resources.

The challenge of countering dehumanizing narratives in international media and advocating for Palestinian humanity.

His efforts to implement life-saving infrastructure—a solar-powered mobile hospital ready in Jordan, awaiting governmental clearance and support.

Reflections on ongoing international solidarity actions (such as the flotilla), barriers in government response, and the larger, multi-community movement for Palestinian rights.

The episode is a raw, moving, and honest exploration of the humanitarian crisis and the limits—and importance—of individual action when governments fall short. Dr. Mustafa discusses his ongoing lobbying efforts, the importance of grassroots support, and how to follow and support his continuing work.

In this episode of "What Makes You Tick," host Stephen speaks with Dr. Victoria Rose, a UK-based consultant plastic surgeon, about her extensive humanitarian work in Gaza during the ongoing Israel-Gaza war. The conversation opens with Dr. Rose's personal journey into medicine and plastic surgery, but quickly turns to her frontline experiences in Gaza, where she has completed three "tours" since 2018, working primarily with trauma victims – the majority of whom are children – in the besieged territory. Dr. Rose provides firsthand, harrowing accounts of the catastrophic impact of Israeli military operations on Gaza’s civilian population.

She describes the escalating numbers of wounded and killed, the relentless airstrikes, and the devastation wrought upon hospitals and essential infrastructure. The situation, as Dr. Rose recounts, is a direct result of the actions and policies of Israel under Benjamin Netanyahu's government. She underscores that this government is solely responsible for the ongoing humanitarian crisis and the scale of civilian suffering in Gaza, which she frankly describes as genocide. She details the work of her team in conjunction with IDEALS, a medical charity, and shares powerful stories of the local population’s resilience and unimaginable hardship—highlighting how Gaza, before the war, was a place full of culture, education, and strong community bonds, now reduced to ruins where survival is the daily struggle.

Dr. Rose discusses the profound psychological and physical toll on children, illustrating this with stories of child patients who have suffered life-changing injuries or lost family members in the bombardment. A significant part of the conversation focuses on the catastrophic failure of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the body currently tasked with delivering aid. Dr. Rose describes the GHF's approach as disgraceful, militarized, and deadly, with their flawed system resulting in additional deaths—including shootings at aid distribution points—and inadequate food provision (often just bags of rice and pasta, far from meeting the actual needs of the population). She states unequivocally that the GHF must be removed and replaced by legitimate, experienced humanitarian actors such as UNICEF, UNRWA, the World Food Programme, and other established aid organizations that are capable of providing comprehensive relief, including food, healthcare, water, sanitation, and protection for the most vulnerable.

Dr. Rose also addresses the misinformation and propaganda in Western media, calling out news organizations like the BBC for adopting narratives that label Palestinian healthcare workers as members of Hamas—assertions she firmly refutes based on her on-the-ground experience. She emphasizes that her colleagues in Gaza are doctors and nurses dedicated solely to saving lives amid impossible conditions. In her message to world leaders and the international community, Dr. Rose urges for immediate, tangible action: a ceasefire leading to a two-state solution, and the restoration of proper humanitarian agencies in Gaza. She insists that real change requires both political will and a return to basic human decency—her most striking takeaway being, "We just have to be nice to each other."

This episode offers a raw, urgent, and deeply informed perspective on the devastation in Gaza, directly holding Israel and its current leadership responsible for the humanitarian disaster, and calls for an overhaul of current aid mechanisms to prevent further needless suffering.