After spending much of her career in America, Tammin Sursok is back in Australia with her husband, Sean McEwen, and two kids, Phoenix and Lennon.
But although the actress was excited to finally be reunited with her parents after years of not seeing them, COVID-19 had different plans.
WATCH: Tammin Sursok taking Hollywood by storm
Tammin, 37, arrived in Australia in June, right before the Delta strain of COVID began to wreak havoc across the country. The former Home & Away star tells Who how she’s coping with the sudden outbreak.
“I think the hardest part is not being able to see my parents. It’s been two and a half years, so thinking that we were going to come back and be able to spend time together…” Tammin says. “But I know that a lot of families are in the same boat and a lot of people have been separated because of what’s going on; we’re not in the minority.”
It’s clear that the former Pretty Little Liars star continues to count her blessings, explaining that each day she tries to “be grateful and practise mindfulness” with her family, who have become all too familiar with self-isolation.
“In the US we were in lockdown for over a year and a half so we’ve dealt with this and we know how to move within these lockdowns emotionally and mentally and physically. So it hasn’t been too hard in that part. But definitely not seeing my parents has been difficult.”
Since being back in Australia, Tammin has spent some time in the Gold Coast filming her new movie You, Me and the Penguins. The actress reveals to Who that, as she is based in Sydney, she hasn’t been to Queensland in a very long time, meaning she was able to “rediscover the area” and share it with her children.
“It’s an incredible state. It was the middle of winter and it was warm, so being able to shoot in those conditions is always incredibly helpful. We had a very joyous experience.”
And, of course, being back in beachy Australia was always bound to remind Tammin of her days as Dani Sutherland on Home & Away.
“There’s a lot of scenes where we were on the beach, and it was definitely reminiscent of that time. There was a familiar feel and smells. There was a lot of nostalgia shooting now and really remembering that time which was completely life changing for me as a 15-year-old.”
Although Tammin’s Home & Away days are behind her, the actress has nothing but gratitude for her time on the soap, telling Who how her role on the show catapulted her into other opportunities.
“Home & Away changed my life in Australia and it made me more well known, so I was able to get the opportunities to be able to continue my career. I’m so grateful for the day I got cast on that show.”
WATCH: Tammin Sursok shares adorable video of daughter Phoenix (Article continues after video)
As well as shooting her new film, Tammin also co-hosts a podcast, Women On Top, with Roxy Manning where they discuss the truths about woman- and motherhood.
Tammin shares two daughters, Phoenix and Lennon, with her director husband, Sean McEwen. For the Aussie Girl star, sharing her experiences has been a way to “make women and mothers feel less alone on their motherhood journey”.
“When I became a mother, I didn’t really have anyone that I looked up to who talked about struggling and the pitfalls of parenting,” Tammin says. “So, I just wanted to create a safe place for mothers and women to feel like they were seen and that their journey and their failures aren’t uncommon.”
“It’s something that we all deal with on a daily basis and no one is immune to struggles. There’s no such thing as perfect parenting and the perfect mother-daughter-son bond. My intention is just to make women and mothers feel less isolated and to have that space to share their own experiences; to come together as a community and as a collective and support one another.”
As for what’s next for Tammin, the 37-year-old says, while her goal has always been to work in both America and Australia, she’s keen to spend more time down under.
“Because of how my work schedule has laid out I haven’t been able to spend as much time here. So definitely something that we’re working towards is spending more time in Australia for the kids and for our family.”
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