Sarah McLean: No mountain too high for this farmer, psychologist and mum

Sarah McLean wears a lot of hats — she’s a mum, a neuropsychologist and a farmer who manages three cattle properties. And that’s not all.

Shine nominee Sarah McLean with her horse, Max, and Te Mania Angus at Hexham. Picture: Yuri Kouzmin.

BETWEEN raising two young children, managing three cattle farms, working part-time as a neuropsychologist and representing her fellow farmers on two advisory committees, Sarah McLean doesn’t have a lot of spare time. And she likes it that way.

“There are lots of early mornings and late nights, no holidays … but if you’re doing something you enjoy it’s not really work,” she says.

Sarah McLean with daughter River. Picture: Yuri Kouzmin

“If I can get on a horse and muster cattle, I couldn’t think of a better way to spend the day.”

The fifth-generation farmer, who grew up at Drik Drik and now lives at Hexham near Warrnambool, says most neuropsychologists live in the city but her life goal is “to have a farm the whole family can live off”.

Despite Sarah’s days being jam-packed with work, she says she still has a lot of “bigger picture” interests, which include encouraging intergenerational farming, reducing the stigma around mental health and advocating for more sustainable farming practices.

As expected, she doesn’t shy away from taking on the role of doing those things either.

Sarah is a farmer representative for the National Centre for Farmer Health and is deputy chair of the Victorian Young Farmers Advisory Council.

“It’s a way of the government tapping into what’s happening and me getting that voice across,” she says.

“One of my focuses recently has been more of a push to raise the profile of farm mental health and reduce stigma and breakdown barriers.

“It’s something that’s not talked about hugely in farming communities.”

Sarah recently joined a new working group to help reduce the rate of suicide in the Great South Coast region.

“As a farmer and a psychologist, I believe that poor mental health is one of the biggest challenges in the agricultural industry,” she says.

And the lack of resources doesn’t exactly help the situation.

“In the city there’s (a neuropsychologist) in every rehab clinic, big teams in hospitals but I’m the only one down here,” Sarah says.

“I think that’s echoed across rural health in general.”

Sarah is also a successful barrel racer, with her passion for health and neuropsychology all beginning with her love for horses.

“It started back riding horses and (my interest in) the psychology of working horses and how that tied in with people,” she says.

Now it involves working with people from across all sorts of groups — from people with disabilities to dementia patients.

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Sarah says she’s lucky her daughter, 3, and son, 1, are “classic farm kids” who love being outdoors and entertaining themselves considering her busy life.

“Managing the safety aspect is the biggest priority,” she says.

“I’m lucky they’re patient.

“Sometimes I don’t balance it all well, that’s the truth of it but you just keep going.”

Sarah’s partner, Byron O’Keefe, who she met at a rodeo, can’t help but boast about his fellow farmer, describing her as “selfless” and “always happy to help out with other people”.

“I just really admire how she manages it all and takes care of kids,” he says.