Shahiza

“My biggest hope is that everyone around me is happy. Mental health, anxiety, and depression [are] all so common in this stressful lifestyle. All I want is for everyone to be genuinely happy.”

Shahiza is 23-years-old and a general manager at a fitness gym. After being bullied about her weight when she was younger she became passionate about fitness, which led her to discover that working in the health and fitness field is what she wanted to do. She told me the first time she tried yoga she “felt this peace you can’t find anywhere else,” and now hopes to open her own yoga studio. Shahiza told me her biggest challenge has been constantly trying to prove herself. Because of her blue hair she thinks “conservative people often perceive me as a rebel or a "wild child,” but instead she would like to be seen like how her family sees her: “an amazing person who can really set an example and who can achieve anything.” What’s most important to Shahiza is her family because “at the end of the day no matter what happens in life, my parents and sibling will without a doubt always be there for me.” Shahiza’s favourite quality about herself is how outgoing she is. She told me, “I can make anyone I cross paths with smile. It kind of becomes a mission of mine since the world can be very unkind, why not be the reason for a person to smile.”

Q&A Feature:

What is your proudest accomplishment and why?

"Going bungee jumping! I jumped off of a 160FT high bridge!"

What is a fun fact about you that you haven’t told me yet?

"I know the words to every episode of Friends LOL. I've definitely seen each episode a minimum of 5 times!"