Barkindji Warrior- Australian grappling champion Shantelle Thompson

Seven years ago, Shantelle Thompson found herself in a very dark place. After giving birth to twins, the mother or three suffered post-natal depression and had suicidal thoughts. But instead of using medication to battle her inner demons, Thompson turned to Brazilian jiu-jitsu — a decision that would see her become a world champion.

- Zach Broadhurst

“BJJ saved my life,” says Shantelle Thompson. “After the birth of my twins in 2009, I became sick and I did not know what was wrong. I started having suicidal thoughts and I knew I needed to seek help.

“I spoke with my partner George and some close friends and we identified that I had post-natal depression and I decided to go back to BJJ. I used martial arts to save my life and find a way back to spiritual, physical and mental health.

But what simply began as a means to battle her depression quickly became much more to Thompson than she ever could have imagined.

“It became so much more than just an escape. It became a way to find myself and it became a way of life,” says Thompson. “Training in BJJ provides me a unique opportunity to develop self-control, self-awareness and connect a sense of personal identity. This ‘looking inward’ translates off the mats as well, and for me this gave me strategies to manage and cope with my depression. I began to learn to look at my own actions and reactions in challenging life situations rather than revert to exterior blame, and it helped to develop mental toughness.”

To those close to Thompson, her ability to transition so easily into combat sports was less than shocking, considering she’d spent most of her life fighting one way or another.

“I grew up fighting, always walking between two worlds, never quite fitting in,” says Thompson. “Also, being the second eldest in my family and helping to raise younger siblings, I also fought to protect others and for what I believed was right. This history, plus my achievements in BJJ so far, led to my aunty, an elder in our Barkindji community, to call me the ‘Barkindji Warrior’, because I was always fighting for what I believed in.