What makes Her Campus UCT so special and unique from the other chapters is that our members, writers, and students are incredibly diverse. Each person has something beautiful and interesting about them – a story to share, a talent, or an outlook on life. We’d like to celebrate our diversity by zooming in on individuals’ stories, speaking to them about what they’re most passionate about and letting them shine on our platform. Whether it be just for a chuckle or to actually share some wise words, we’d like to introduce a new series to Her Campus UCT: Humxns of UCT.
Meet Blair Inglis, a final year UCT film student and a member of Her Campus’ social media and visual & creative team. Born with Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) and having gone through four open heart surgeries with her most recent one during her matric year in 2016, Blair is no stranger to hardships. What makes this woman so absolutely inspiring is her ability to triumph through each challenge and be a beacon of hope for young children who were born with the same heart defect. I had the delight of chatting with Blair and it quickly became apparent that her ambition, lust for life and pure resilience is something we can all admire.
So Blair, what inspired you to go into the film industry?
I’ve always loved storytelling and reading stories. So, when I was about 10 years old, I came to the realisation that the films I loved watching, the books I loved reading, the poems and short stories that I enjoyed writing could be combined and I could actually make a film, if I wrote screenplays and implemented a project – that was just kind of…it!
I was very lucky, because I went into high school and the thought of going into the film industry as a career didn’t change. So, when it came to subject choices, it was quite helpful because I was like “yeah I don’t have to do physics!” [Laughs].
I’m lucky that I’m as passionate about it as I was when I was 10, because a lot of people do struggle to figure out what they want to do. It’s not necessarily all that I want to do, but I’ve definitely been enjoying my studies so that’s hopefully a good indication that I’ve chosen the right career path.
What are some of your favourite things to watch?
It’s very difficult to choose – it varies depending on moods – but I can honestly say that there are two really good series that have been exceptionally important. They’re not only absolutely hilarious, but they’re just exceptionally wholesome, very healthy in the topics that they discuss and you can really relate to the characters and human experiences. I’m talking about ‘One Day at a Time’ on Netflix, which looks at a Cuban-American family and deals with things that are quite taboo in the Latino community. There’s also ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’, which is just amazing, portrays one of the most realistic and healthy heterosexual relationships and also just shows a group of colleagues and friends who truly are diverse and there for each other, no matter the circumstances.
You’ve been through quite the remarkable journey. How do you cope everything/ challenging times?
I know what my body can deal with and what its limits are, so I try my best to eat as healthily as possible for my heart because I’ve always kind of known that’s an organ I need to look after. In terms of exercise, I can’t do major cardiovascular activities – even walking around [UCT’s] big campus is a lot. It’s a good idea to be on time for compulsory lessons, but as important as the academic work is to me, I’d rather be 2-5 minutes late for a class, than almost pass out on my way to class.
I’m also very lucky that my parents gave me as normal a childhood as possible and they’ve always been very helpful in making me understand and appreciate my body. I have a lot of scars and the other day my sister actually asked me, “Blair, how many scars do you have?” and I was like, “I don’t know, can I get back to you” [Laughs]. As far as I know, I’ve got 14 but it could be 14+ and they’re all from surgeries, but I’ve never felt insecure about wearing a bikini to the beach. I always appreciate the fact that my body did the absolute best that it could and it is doing the absolute best that it can, so I try my best to look after it.
In terms of coping, I’d say, it’s very important to make sure you have a healthy relationship with your body if you are someone who has a chronic illness. It can be difficult, especially if there are not a lot of people who can be a living example of someone with the same illness, which is something I didn’t have when I was younger.
Mental health days, where you take off, are exceptionally legitimate for anyone. I’ve always told parents with children who have CHD, that if your child tells you that they are really tired or feel like they can’t go to school that day – take that seriously. Rest days helped me cope and my parents did allow me to take a rest day, here and there, when I needed to. I don’t think I would’ve coped if my parents had been very strict and firm and said, “no you can’t miss school!”. Understanding where you stand with your chronic illness and knowing where your energy needs to be revitalised is how I coped. Tell us about working with young children with CHD and how that has influenced your life?
At the end of 2016, I was approached by a woman, called Professor Liesl Zuhlke. She works at The Red Cross Children’s Hospital as a pediatric cardiac surgeon. She’s also a member of Red Cross Pediatric Cardiac Research and Advisory Board and she asked myself and my mom to be members of that board.
My age was helpful. Being 18 at the time, I could still recall what it was like to be a child patient, and how it felt to go through surgeries, but I could also speak to the parents, doctors, nurses, researchers and other medical professionals. They can ask me any harsh or blunt questions that are maybe a bit too mature in content for them to ask their own children, who are much younger. The children can ask me any questions about what it’s like to grow up and cope as a young adult with a CHD, and through a heart surgery in matric.
Growing up, I had no reference to anyone who was older than me that I could picture as an example of what it would be like to be older, and if it was possible for me to actually live to a certain age. I felt quite alone as a child, in the sense that I felt that I was the only one like me, which wasn’t the case. It just wasn’t a community that had been looked into that much, because everyone thinks of heart disease stereotypically only affecting older men. I just want to let all age groups know that it affects everyone.
The research and advisory board does events where they have different kind of experts on the matter speak to both the children and their parents about CHD, and when they have them, I’m asked to speak. The first time I did this, it was February 2017, about a week or two before classes [at UCT] started. I could confidently stand on the stage, recovering from surgery, and tell these kids “I had open heart surgery and a few months ago I wrote prelims and finals and I’m still recovering but it’s okay if you have a good support system behind you and understand your condition.” It was quite astonishing to be up there and witness this community of understanding amongst the medical professionals, families and children. These children are so vibrant and have so much joy, energy and potential, and I don’t want them to think that just because they have this chronic illness they can’t make something of themselves and achieve their dreams and goals. After I spoke, this 9 year old girl came up to me, looked into my eyes and said, “you’re so inspiring.” I had to hold back tears because I hadn’t consciously intended to be the example I craved when I was younger, but that just ended up happening. It kind of soothed a part of myself because I felt I was being the person I needed when I was younger to some other young child, and I do recognise it is a responsibility – and not one that I carry lightly.
Tune into Red Cross Children’s Hospital Radio
What’s your go-to self-care tip?
Honestly, my best thing is finding a skincare routine that works for me and finding the time of day to implement that skincare routine. Personally, at the end of a long day, going through that nighttime skincare routine is exceptionally therapeutic. It’s like taking away the stress before you go to sleep.
I also just enjoy having a go-to playlist of songs that put me in a good mood, so I’ll listen to one of those if I need a moment of self-care. If I need space for myself, I love going to Kirstenbosch on a Saturday or Sunday and just walking around, relaxing, taking a book or journal and just being amongst nature, because there’s not that overwhelming negative energy that can be quite draining when you’re around a lot of technology or a lot of people. I’m quite an empath, I can feel the energy and changes of people around me, so being on campus can be quite taxing. Those days at Kirstenbosch are really helpful and I find myself in a far better mood once I’ve taken that time for myself.
Any words of advice for someone going through a really tough time right now?
I can speak as somebody who is going through a really rough time right now. I quite recently lost my dad to a battle with cancer and it’s my final year of undergrad, so it has been quite a tough time. What’s relevant to you might not be relevant to me, we all experience difficult times and situations in our own way, but I think what’s helped to ground me is to remember my intentions in life.
If people want to question decisions that you make or if you seem to be taking things too well – I’m someone that probably is my own toughest critic – don’t let other people’s expectations of the person that they think you are, and want you to be, make you feel as though you need to compromise your core values. You know yourself, and at the end of the day, you have to do the best you can with the energy you know you can put towards everything each day. Don’t compromise your mental health. If you don’t have a clear end-goal in mind, that’s perfectly okay, because I don’t think any of us do. Life gets in the way, things happen, and if you need to rearrange some things and take time off for yourself – do it.
If you can look back to that humanity in you and how you want to contribute with your humanity to other people’s humanity, in this world, then hopefully you can stay motivated no matter how you are feeling that day.
So, what’s next for Blair?
Oh, that question [laughs]. So last year I was the vice-chair for the UCT film society and this year I was the chairperson. I’m finishing my undergrad now and I am applying for honours in film production – either screenwriting or documentary. I might be doing some part-time work as well, if I can, and work on personal projects. If I get into honours, I’ll be the creative director for Her Campus UCT, next year, which is very exciting!
So, there’s honours next year then another intensive year of Postgraduate Degree in Journalism at Stellenbosch – I’d like to do that after honours. If I can manage to pull that off while making sure I am emotionally and mentally healthy, then I could potentially have three degrees in five years – which is a pretty decent usage of time, I would say.
The long-term? I don’t want to tie myself down to one particular thing. Going into this industry, you need to be skilled in various different techniques. So, my ultimate goal is to go into this industry being creative, but practical and organised. I want to work on projects that are meaningful and which portray stories that need to be told but with integrity. I’d like to slowly, but surely, create a good reputation within the industry, so I can found and own a production and media company one day. I want to cultivate not only a space for myself to continue learning and being creative, but also just work on projects that are meaningful and emotive and provide a space for people to further harness their skills and learn more about the industry that they want to practice in. I want to create an inclusive space for dynamic, interesting, and emotionally and socially aware individuals.
I wish you everything of the best, Blair!
Check out Blair’s Instagram page and The Western Cape Blood Service.