Ndivho Munyai once dreamed of a career in agriculture, inspired by her aunt, a production scientist, during her primary school years. But moving to the city changed that outlook. Today, she’s a dedicated young assistant nurse based in Johannesburg, focusing on mental health and childhood-related issues.
She works tirelessly on supporting farming families, encouraging communities to seek help and take charge of what they can.
Growing up in a rural area with limited exposure to career options, her perspective was shaped by her surroundings.
Munyai grew up in a home with strict parents in Mashau Thondoni, Limpopo. Her father, John Munyai, worked as a security guard in Gauteng, but whenever he had time off or leave days, he made sure to be with the family. Munyai says it helped build a strong bond between the four siblings and created a sense of safety at home.
Inspired by need
Her mother, Ivy, worked at a local factory and was the one who was always nearby. “She taught us values that kept us close as a family and helped us make the best choices we could,” she says.
Going to church was also something that wasn’t up for debate, it was just part of life.
“My father once told me, ‘Never depend on a man’s money. Make your own.’ That stuck with me. And it’s still working for me,” she says.
When her aunt moved to the Eastern Cape for work, Munyai started seeing things differently. She noticed how rural areas lacked nurses, and that’s when the idea of becoming one started to grow.
After matric, she moved to Germiston in Gauteng and enrolled at Empilweni Nursing College in Randburg. She did a one-year certificate in auxiliary nursing, also known as assistant nursing.
Since 2013, she says, working in the field has taught her a lot, especially about mental health and the kinds of issues families deal with every day.
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Care that goes beyond work
Munyai shares with Health For Mzansi that she has over 10 years of experience working with patients facing challenges such as substance abuse, severe depression, work-related stress, financial difficulties, marital problems, suicidal thoughts, personality disorders, bullying, and trauma, including rape.
“Psych has helped me in life in general,” she says. “When I come across life problems, I can handle them on my own. I’ve developed strong coping skills and a strong personality.
“When I see that I can’t handle something, it’s easy to seek therapy. This has helped me offload life challenges.”
Ndivho Munyai
She explains that most of her work has involved teenagers from different backgrounds, dealing with a range of mental health diagnoses. That experience has taught her the value of making informed decisions in her own life.
“I had my first child at the age of 30. I named her Tshilidzi,” she says. “I didn’t leave her with my mother because I wanted to experience what it really means to be a mother. I didn’t want her to ever say, ‘My mum wasn’t there.’ I’ve seen too many children grow up feeling like that.”
Munyai believes there is still a big gap in how mental health is handled in black communities.
“Some diagnoses are taken seriously, and others are ignored like they don’t exist. There’s a need for more awareness, so that people who need help, especially with mental health, actually get it.”
Shame still shapes rural healthcare
Munyai sees education as a must for her family and community.
She explains that in villages, some health issues are kept quiet because people feel ashamed to talk about them. Conditions like epilepsy and schizophrenia are often linked to boloi (witchcraft).
“We need more platforms, even radio interviews, where we can discuss these stigmas in languages the community understands.”
She adds that villages need rehabilitation centres. “A different environment can help someone who wants to leave substance abuse, but medical help is also needed.”
Munyai worries about the young kids she sees in city centres begging for food. She thinks these points to problems in family structures.
“We need to do better so people can give and receive the kind of love that keeps families together, even when life is tough.”
Now based in Germiston, Gauteng, as a nursing assistant, Munyai shares that she is on the waiting list at Nectare Education for the 2026 intake (diploma in nursing). She hasn’t chosen a specialisation yet but hopes to help close the healthcare gap between urban and rural areas.
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