"I was born and raised here, and I've only ever known Harehills and Roundhay. I'm currently a personal trainer, but before that, I was a primary school teacher. I had to step away from teaching when I had my kids, and it was during a difficult time in my life that I discovered fitness. I had a nervous breakdown, and fitness was the only thing that helped me pull through.
I'm also deeply involved in the community. I co-run a teen Muslim girls' group and recently helped start a single mums' club. I have such a vested interest in mental health because I know what it was like to have an actual nervous breakdown. It was the lack of knowledge in the community that prompted me to raise mental health awareness. That's where my initiative, 'Chalo', came from – a project I co-run with a therapist to get women moving and exercising, but also making sure it's done with intention. I feel like there's not enough culturally appropriate information out there, and breaking the taboo around mental health in our communities is crucial. That's why I will openly speak about having postnatal depression, depressive episodes, or anxiety, or whatever. We don't realise how many people are suffering until they hear someone else's story and realise they're not alone.
Looking back at growing up in Harehills, I now recognise how the cultural diversity here has been such a safety net. As a visibly Muslim woman wearing hijab and being brown, I feel incredibly safe in Harehills. I never experienced the same racism that some of my friends from outside the area have faced. Because Harehills is so culturally diverse, and because people are so accepting, it means that there's a certain level of safety in who you are. I feel safe to walk the streets, I feel safe leading fitness classes, and I feel very welcome. I think that's a really nice thing about Harehills. That and the community spirit. It's that sense of community, it's about everyone helping one another, mucking in, putting themselves forward. I really like that about Harehills. It's that sense of, "we're here if you need us." That's definitely a big one for me."
