When it comes to advocacy, a lot of work is external: a rally you attend, a post you share, an event you organize — all for the promotion or benefit of another cause. But for Shudufhadzo (Shudu) Musiḓa, mental health advocacy is also deeply personal. “Advocacy begins with the self,” she tells Her Campus. “Before it is about others, it is about advocating for the version of yourself that needed support at some point in your life.”
Advocacy has been a keystone in Musiḓa’s life and, eventually, her career as a podcaster, major pageant titleholder, Columbia University graduate student, and internationally recognized mental health advocate. Growing up in the Ha-Masia village in the Vhembe District Municipality of Limpopo, South Africa, Musiḓa saw firsthand the disparities that created pain within her country and community, such as economic opportunities and access to resources like clean water. But while distributing food parcels and supporting water security efforts in another village in South Africa during the pandemic, Musiḓa realized the root cause of the suffering was something much more. “While we were addressing material needs, there was a deeper, quieter crisis unfolding — one rooted in hopelessness and emotional exhaustion,” Musiḓa says. “Many communities had been taught to be resilient to the point that their mental health had been neglected entirely. And I began to understand that without addressing the mind, it becomes incredibly difficult to break cycles of poverty and despair.”
That experience was what led Musiḓa, under the spotlight of the 2020 Miss South Africa finals, to deliver her message to millions: “For any change to come about in our communities, we must tackle the mind,” she said. “The powerhouse. If the mind is conquered, we will go nowhere.”
There is often pressure to appear as though everything is under control. But true advocacy creates room for honesty.
Musiḓa had her fair share of hardships when it came to her mental health, too. Reflecting on her experience in the 2020 Miss South Africa pageant, Musiḓa describes her anxiety as “paralyzing” and “incredibly difficult” to navigate. “It often felt like [other contestants] had it all figured out,” she says. “I was deeply introverted, and suddenly I was being asked to show up in front of millions.”
For Musiḓa, leaning on her support system during that time was crucial — but so was doing inner work. “What helped me navigate that time was community, but more importantly, the realization that external validation could not do the internal work for me,” she says. “I had to build a relationship with myself.”
Almost six years after winning the title of Miss South Africa, Musiḓa has continued to advocate for mental health, the mind, and the self. Her message on that stage was the spark that began her Mindful Mondays Instagram series — where she brought in psychologists, psychiatrists, and mental health professionals to educate and create a sense of community every week on Instagram Live, later posting to her feed. “People were afraid of what they didn’t understand, and education helped them feel less alone,” she says. “Over time, it became clear that people weren’t just looking for solutions — they were looking to feel seen.”
This realization then led Musiḓa to turn Mindful Mondays into a long-form podcast, which features weekly conversations that aren’t just about mental health, but also about personal growth and development. “I wanted to meet people where they are, not where we expect them to be,” she says. “The work is not about prescribing a single path, but about validating lived experiences and reminding people that healing is not linear.”
And while Mindful Mondays has reached millions of people across its two seasons, Musiḓa has experienced some difficult, triggering moments. “I was engaging deeply with stories that were often heavy and, at times, close to my own lived experiences,” she says. “That level of trust is powerful, but it is also incredibly heavy. I had to recognize that I could not be everything for everyone.” She points to one important part of her role in the larger mental health ecosystem: “It became important to direct people to professionals and institutions equipped to support them,” she says. “Advocacy is not about being the solution alone — it’s about building ecosystems of care.”
Beyond Mindful Mondays, Musiḓa has continued to advocate for mental health outside of the podcasting studio. Since February 2025, Musiḓa has been working as a Global Champion for Women and Girls for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) — a sexual and reproductive health agency that works to promote reproductive rights and gender equality, as well as reducing maternal deaths, in over 150 countries. “As someone who grew up in a village, I have seen firsthand — both directly and through those around me — the realities that this work seeks to address,” she says. “To now sit at the table as someone who reflects those communities is deeply meaningful. It allows me to advocate not just from theory, but from lived experience. It allows me to speak about issues like bodily autonomy and choice in ways that are grounded in reality.”
Her first act with the UNFPA was launching a campaign entitled Patterns of Hope: – Inside the Movement to End Female Genital Mutilation, which focused on ending the harmful practice experienced by over than 200 million women and girls worldwide. “[This work] represents the ability to pay it forward,” Musiḓa says. “It is a reminder that the work of the UNFPA is not abstract — it is tangible, and I am living proof of its impact.”
In a time where advocating for mental health can either feel like an inaudible whisper or like screaming into the void, Musiḓa urges others to “see yourself in the work,” especially as a student. “As a student myself, I understand how demanding that environment can be,” she says. “There is often pressure to appear as though everything is under control. But true advocacy creates room for honesty.”
Because when it comes to things like mental health, change starts with you. “Advocate in a way that reflects your own experiences,” she says. “When you do that, your voice becomes not only powerful, but necessary.”