SHE SOARS

Part 2: Shania Bhopa on doing it all, women’s well-being and cervical cancer prevention

• CARE Canada • Season 3 • Episode 4

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In a special part two episode, Shania Bhopa rejoins Youth Champions Shreya and Paniz to continue their conversation about women’s health and rights. Shania is the founder of @wellbyshania and the Do It All Girl online community, as well as a global health PhD candidate who publicly documented her journey of freezing her eggs at 25 years old.  In this episode, Shania discusses her strategies for balancing multiple passions and roles, the importance of the HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine, and how her ‘Do It All Girl’ philosophy challenges traditional norms. With actionable tips for avoiding burnout and emphasizing the need for women to redefine success on their own terms, this episode is packed with practical advice and inspiring stories to help listeners live their best life.

*SHE SOARS, funded by Global Affairs Canada, is the Sexual and reproductive Health and Economic empowerment Supporting Out-of-school Adolescent girls’ Rights and Skills project. Learn more at: https://care.ca/shesoarsproject

Episode transcripts are available in French and English at: care.ca/shesoars.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the SHE SOARS podcast are the speakers’ own and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, standards and policies of CARE Canada. The SHE SOARS podcast is a youth-led initiative that provides space for young people to discuss global Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights with the purpose of raising awareness in Canada. Listeners acknowledge that the material and information presented in the podcast are for informational purposes only and do not constitute advice or services. The podcast is for private, non-commercial use and speakers do not necessarily reflect any organization they work for.

[00:00:00] Paniz: Hi, and welcome to SHE SOARS. Her voice. Her rights. 

[00:00:05] Jacqueline: We are CARE Canada's Youth Champions, a group of young people across Canada who are passionate advocates for Sexual and Reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

[00:00:13] Paniz: We're excited to discuss and raise awareness about young women's rights and choices in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia. ​

[00:00:18] Jacqueline: Together, we will explore how these global issues connect to our lives as Canadian youth and discover ways in which we can all take action. 

[00:00:26] Paniz: We will also talk about the SHE SOARS project, which improves access to health and education, which are areas we want to see change in. Join us!

[00:00:37] Shreya: Hi everyone and welcome back to the SHE SOARS podcast. My name is Shreya and I'm joined again by Paniz. We are the Youth Champions at CARE Canada. If you tuned into our last episode, you know we had an incredible conversation with Shania Bhopa, who talked all about reproductive health and freezing her eggs at just 25 years old. We're so excited to have her back on for part two of our conversation today.

[00:00:57] Paniz: Shania is a global health PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) candidate who brings her expertise in women's health to her community on social media, challenging the status quo and empowering girls to do it all. She's the founder of @wellbyshania on Instagram and TikTok, co founder of the Canadian Courage Project, author of a children's book, curriculum and more.

[00:01:16] Shreya: Last episode, Shania spoke about her experience freezing her eggs to protect her future choices. She also shared fascinating insight into the impact of artificial intelligence on women's health care and the role that we play in advocating for ourselves and girls globally. 

[00:01:31] Paniz: One thing we found really interesting is how Shania shared that we can all be global citizens using the privilege and opportunities we have to help uplift girls everywhere. As the Youth Champions on the SHE SOARS project, our mission is to raise awareness of girls’ health and rights in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia while engaging Canadian youth in how these topics affect us all.

[00:01:51] Shreya: Yes, I agree completely. We recently hosted a workshop at WickFest in Calgary, which is a girls’ hockey tournament to engage the girls in conversations about Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights. I find that these important topics aren't talked about outside of these spaces in Canada too, and we think it's so important that girls are aware of their own bodies, rights, and decision-making power.

[00:02:11] Paniz: In Kenya, Uganda and Zambia, we have a Youth Advisory Board on the SHE SOARS project and they have been meeting with youth leaders to learn about the transformative change and health advocacy happening there. So stay tuned for updates about those new developments.

[00:02:25] Just a quick note before we start to anyone who is feeling like they're struggling to juggle it all. Just remember that you are not alone. Life can ask a lot of us and sometimes all we have to give is our focus on one priority at a time. And that is more than enough. We each come with different experiences and what looks like balance can be different for everybody, so just a reminder to be gentle towards yourself.

[00:02:45] Shreya: Now let's get into part two of our episode with Shania. Welcome back to the podcast, Shania. We're so excited to learn more about your Do It All Girl philosophy and your tips for girls who want to live their life the fullest, healthiest and the most productive. We'll also get into cervical cancer prevention, a topic that we know you're super passionate about.

[00:03:04] Shania: Hi, my name is Shania Bhopa and I feel really grateful to be here today. I am a final year PhD candidate in global health, where I specialize in co-designing healthy active living interventions for newcomer families. I have expertise in women's health and I have a community online called the Do It All Girls, where I hope to share as much empowering tools, systems and information for girls around the world to feel like they can do it all. And I feel really grateful to be here today. Thank you so much for making the time and I look forward to our conversation.

[00:03:39] Shreya: Thank you so much for sharing that, Shania. I wanted to start off by asking you to tell us a little bit more about your platform, the Do It All Girls. What was your intention behind creating this community and how can girls apply this approach to improve their lives and well-being?

[00:03:51] Shania: Honestly, the idea behind the Do It All Girls started from my mom. As a kid, she would just tell my sisters and I, “You can do it all and you can do it all at the same time and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.” If I were to quote my mother, that is her quote. I grew up feeling that and knowing that. And It wasn't until a few years ago when I was frequently asked the question, "How do you balance multiple things? How do you stay passionate about multiple things?" Or I was faced with the criticism that you can't do it all at the same time like you're going to burn out and it's going to be a catastrophe. This is where I actually want to challenge the notion of do it all. I think oftentimes when people first hear it, they think that means you're juggling 50 things at the same time and spreading yourself thin. I would argue that doing it all is a self-motivated philosophy. For example, I could be someone who is a figure skater and that is all I do. And I love figure skating. And outside of figure skating, I hang out with my friends and I do art and crafts and I also work in advocacy. And that to me is doing it all because you're doing all the things that you love and all the things that fill your heart. So I don't think doing it all is necessarily related to just professionalism, but it's related to just making sure as a woman, you feel like you can accomplish all your dreams in this lifetime and there is no one telling you otherwise. And women to feel empowered by other women that they can be the multifaceted person that they are and be appreciated in every room that they walk into. 

[00:05:23] I think our education system – and I emphasize this in my TED talk – you, as Canadians are empowered to be specialists in one category, because that is what will bring you success. That is what will bring you achievement in your lifetime. And yes, to a certain degree, I agree. However, we can also make room in the classroom to feel like [people] can excel in every subject in school and they don't just have to narrow in on one subject to be exceptional. So it actually starts with conditioning that we face in education systems here in Canada at an early age to have this negative or uncertain perception of doing it all. I want to challenge that. I think that you just need tools and systems and a supportive community behind you. And once my PhD is done, I want to spend some time building out what that looks like, whether it be through resources or supportive community. I really just believe that evidence-based tools will empower every individual to unleash their true colors without being burnt out.

[00:06:28] We don't need to spread ourselves thin. You know, I was in cycles of burnout for years until I just sat down and I dedicated 13 months of research to study and test every science-backed productivity tool. I honestly have not been burnt out since. And I schedule rest, according to the seven categories of rest. There are tools that I use to make sure that there is so much room carved out for planning and execution and rest. If we create this well-oiled machine as girls in this world, we're then going to create a space for girls that we're raising in our community and young people to feel like they're walking into a room and can be appreciated for everything that they are. 

[00:07:12] Shreya: To make this a little bit more personal as someone who is a member of the community, I have always found that the community has been rooted in balance. It has never been about spreading yourself too thin or trying to network with as many people as possible or maybe even show up and prove yourself in spaces. It has always been serving yourself and being introspective. And I think that's very beautiful and it's very lovely to be part of a community that I can find people who are supporting me and pushing me to do everything that I say I want to do. So I appreciate the answer because it gives people a lot of insight into the thought and empathy that you put into developing that community. So thank you for that.

[00:07:53] I also wonder how do you think that this whole concept challenges the traditional expectations for women? I feel like we're constantly having to prove ourselves 10 times more than our male counterparts sometimes.

How do you think and why do you think it's important for women to build their own definition of success?

[00:08:12] Shania: Fascinating question. There was this quote I read recently – I think it was called like the racial tax or the immigrant tax or something like that – where especially if you have grown up with layered barriers, whether those be social, cultural, economic or immigration, you feel like you need to work 10 times harder than your peer and that can add a lot of internal pressure, which can add quite a bit of self-judgment, comparison, and lead you down a pathway of unhappiness. I want every single person to feel like we acknowledge our barriers and we acknowledge the contributing factors, but you are also so much more than the structural expectations. So this is a conversation of how we can honestly be a little bit more optimistic on a daily basis. And the Do It All Girl or DIA challenges current norms by one of three ways. A quote, “A jack of all trades is a master of none” but really the full quote is, “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” I want us all to redefine what it means to be an exceptional person because I think exceptional people are everywhere. We are all exceptional in our own way and owning all your skills and cool traits and passions. Second it is empowering women to feel like they can be the amazing mom and professional colleague and daughter and sister and friend and community member all at the same time, because you do not need to choose one role to be exceptional. I want to challenge this narrative especially when it comes to motherhood. I think that we often see – and honestly, people around me say it all the time – "Well, if I have kids during X point in my life, I'm going to have to give up. I'm going to have to sacrifice X parts of my professional life." Let's make holistic decisions regarding our lives and they can work in synergy. Again, freezing my eggs was my system that I chose to empower future me. And I think there's a lot of challenge we need to have within the motherhood and professional working woman category. 

[00:10:41] Shania: And then the third is I really want to challenge the fact that – this may be a hot take – I think sometimes individuals who spend all their hours of the day doing things they love, we call them workaholics and we call them obsessed. I got a comment yesterday on TikTok like, “You're so busy, are you running from something?” We get those comments and my response to that is time is finite. When we think about our last day on earth, we assume that we're old and gray. We're in our eighties and that is when we have lived this beautiful life that we can look back on. We don't know if we are going to wake up tomorrow. And unfortunately, I think to think about life you really have to think about death. And I think about death once a week and I think about the fact that you literally are so lucky that you're alive. 

[00:11:26] One of my mentors tells me this all the time. He's 87. His name is Peter. And he says, 'Shania, you are so lucky to be born to the parents that you have in the country that you're in with the resources and accessible tools at your fingertips. Don't waste that opportunity. Someone in another place across the world is wishing for all of those things and you are working for them. It's outside of you.' And I think when we start shifting the way that we perceive being busy or being passionate to how excited and enthusiastic that person must be about being alive to spend their time that way, we shift the narrative and empower people to do it all. 

[00:12:07] Paniz: That's amazing. Honestly, I don't know if it's just me, I think Shreya too, but we feel a little emotional. So another thing that we were interested about – and I'm sure many people are – Have you ever faced any barriers or pushback when seeking out health treatments or something that you weren't aware of because it wasn't advocated for in your community? 

[00:12:30] Shania: Yes, the HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination. Now, for many girls, I'm sure you probably remember that you are in grade seven or eight and you have the option to opt out of this vaccination. And unfortunately, my mom opted me out because I was one of the first years to receive this vaccine and it was new and there was a lot of hesitation. There was actually a Maclean's article that was posted about how our daughters are guinea pigs and a lot of mothers had a lot of fear related to the HPV vaccine. Unfortunately, now today if you are over the age of 26 years old, you have to pay $600 for this vaccination. Now this isn't just any vaccination. It is a cancer prevention vaccine. This used to be just a women's issue, but it's not. HPV is responsible for nearly 90 percent of all cervical cancer. Vaccination is our shield. And that is a barrier. I didn't even know my mom opted me out until I went to my family doctor for a check-up and she was like, “You don't have the vaccine and you are at risk for cervical cancer.” And it is so unfortunate. The statistics are horrible and Ontario is lagging behind in vaccination versus the rest of Canada. It is one of four provinces to not make the HPV vaccine available to adults. So let's think about the high financial barrier. Also, socially and culturally, if you grew up in a family where talking about sex and talking about reproductive health and intimacy was shamed upon, you would probably fear asking your parents if you can get this vaccination, let alone helping you cover the costs of it. So let's think about all of the layered barriers that girls are facing to literally protect themselves against cancer.

[00:14:23] So I had a lot of anger related to this topic and I posted online about it. I ended up finding a girl named Gillian, who had a petition running and with her, I joined forces. There are now five of us founding members. We’re the Prevent HPV Advocacy Coalition. We are essentially trying to lobby the Ontario government. And obviously, after you lobby the Ontario government, you promote it federally, but we just want this vaccination to be covered for everyone under the age of 45 years old. What is cheaper than treating cancer is providing free HPV vaccinations. You know, health economics wise, there is financial incentivization for the government here and I'm just so angry about it. And so, if you resonate with this topic, DM (direct message) me. I'm more than happy to chat about it. Roughly 1 in 5 Ontarians that develop cervical cancer die from it. 

[00:15:20] Shreya: Thank you. I appreciate you covering that topic because I think that is very important for all the people listening, especially since our age group is within the range of people who will have the option to get the vaccination or not. So thank you for that. I really resonate with the fact that you give people actionable and tangible steps for talking about their health or their careers and their goals. And I'm just curious with all the things that you do and all the things that you juggle – like you’ve mentioned before, people ask this question – How do you stay motivated?

[00:15:50] And how do you stay productive without burnout? Because I feel like most people who are either working in the advocacy or social impact space are juggling a lot of things, but obviously they're passionate about it. How do you take care of yourself and how do you prioritize that within your busy schedule? 

[00:16:07] Shania: I have three tips for everyone listening on how to reduce the risk of burnout. Tip number one is there are seven types of rest. Search it up on Google. Read a paper on it. Scheduling your rest according to the seven different types will change your life. And I mean literally scheduling it like an appointment. An example of this is on the weekend I really did not have any emotional or intellectual ability to study but I did not need physical rest. And so I did a triathlon with my friends, a self-guided triathlon because I knew my brain needed to be turned off but my body was so ready and so excited to engage in activity.

[00:16:51] The second tip is we have 168 hours a week. And removing rest, we have about 100. So you have the 100 hour rule. Divide your time and schedule your time according to all your priority buckets. Every single week, choose a Sunday and schedule it out in your Google Calendar, colour block, time block, whatever you need to do to stay diligent with the priority buckets that you have in mind. And then my third recommendation – and I really emphasize planning – is scheduling in your exercise and your mental rest time every single day, whether that looks like 10 minutes of meditation at night or a 10-minute phone-free tech-free walk every single day. Those small habits will compound over time, reduce your risk of chronic disease, boost your mood, improve your overall health and well-being, your immunity and your energy, and therefore you will be a well-oiled machine. 

[00:17:50] Shreya: Thank you so much for answering that question. I'm going to be cognizant of time. I don't want to take up more of your 168-hour week but thank you so much for being here today and speaking to us. You just pop so many good tools and systems in there for our listeners to incorporate into their own lives. So I really appreciate you being here and taking the time out. Thank you so much. 

[00:18:13] Shania: Thank you so much for having me. This was so lovely. 

[00:18:17] Paniz: Thank you, Shania, for sharing more of your valuable insights with us today. We encourage everyone to follow her for more on women's health and balance, and to take care of yourselves as you pursue your own goals. As we do every episode, we're going to share a secret word for our listeners, which today is ‘global health.’ After a holiday break, don't forget to join us again in January to continue our conversation about girls’ health and rights, and comment below about what you want to hear in the new year. Thanks so much for listening!

[00:18:44] Jacqueline: Thanks for listening to SHE SOARS. If you liked this episode, please share it on social media, connect with us in the comments or give us a like.

[00:18:53] Paniz: Make sure to catch our next episode by subscribing to our channel and following us wherever you get your podcasts.

[00:18:59] Jacqueline: Follow @CARECanada on Instagram for updates on our show and the project.

[00:19:04] Paniz: SHE SOARS stands for Sexual and reproductive Health and Economic empowerment, Supporting Out-of-school Adolescent girls’ Rights and Skills in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia.

[00:19:14] Jacqueline: The project is funded by Global Affairs Canada. Check out our global partner organizations: The Center for Reproductive Rights and Restless Development for even more project updates. 

[00:19:23] Paniz: Thanks again for listening. Until next time!