Photography: Tessa Burrows
There are big weeks and then there are huge weeks – for Black Ferns superstar and aspiring doctor Maia Joseph, pulling on her rugby boots for the first game of the Super Rugby Aupiki season and starting her first surgery placement at Christchurch Hospital was about as full-on as it can get!
It’s the kind of schedule that might tip another person over the edge, but the 24-year-old – whose Matatū squad was pipped to the Super Rugby trophy by the Blues Women last month – is just grateful to be living the double life she’s always wanted.
“There’s nothing else I would rather do,” smiles Maia.
“On days off, I struggle not to be excited for the next day or for when I get to go back to work because I’m living my dream life now that I’m doing both rugby and medicine.”
It’s been a huge year for Maia. After taking two years off study to be a full-time Black Fern, the daughter of Highlanders coach and former All Blacks star Jamie Joseph went back to her medical degree in January, swapping lectures and labs for hospital placements.
Maia’s double life
It’s a fast-paced life, but Maia is revelling in every intense second that comes with juggling her two roles.
“When I first got my Black Ferns contract, I tried to make both work, but I wasn’t allowed, for good reason,” she explains.
“They’re both full-time things, so I chose rugby for a while and worked my way up into the team. “After doing that full-time for two years, I really wanted to see if I could do both. It took a long time and I had to convince a lot of people! But I’m really happy to balance both now.”
Inspired by both her dad and her artist mum Mandy, Maia – who plays halfback for Matatū – says their dedication to following their passions made her believe she could achieve anything.
“I get my sport from my dad and my brains from my mum! I learnt from them to do what you love. Dad loves rugby, so he coaches rugby. Mum’s an artist because she loves painting. I’ve always just wanted to pursue what I love.”
A mission close to Maia’s heart
Proud of her Rangitāne, Ngāti Rārua and Ngāti Maniapoto heritage, Maia’s also determined to make positive change to the healthcare system for Māori.
She explains, “If something is wrong with your health or someone in your family’s health, it kind of trumps everything in your life. Being able to help people in those moments, especially Māori people in my whānau, where they probably haven’t had the best health outcomes in New Zealand, is a big motivator.”
With no one else in her family working in healthcare, it’s a path she’s forged herself.
Maia tells, “That’s probably why I hadn’t thought about it earlier, but as an athlete, I’ve always had an interest in the human body and I was good at science at school.”
So with rugby and studying taking up almost every second of her schedule, does Maia feel like she’s sometimes split into two people?
“Not really!” she grins.
“They’re both team-based, really competitive and require a lot of skill under pressure. Taking the two years to be a full-time Black Fern has made me a much better medical student. There are just so many things that are transferable and the reason I’m in one is because I’m also in the other. “The tactics and the things you have to learn and memorise for a game, especially in my position, are honestly just as much as, if not sometimes more than, what I do in med school!”
Learning to give herself grace
That’s not to say nothing rattles her.
Maia admits, “I’m definitely hard on myself sometimes. I’ve done a lot of mental work over the past few years with psychologists around perfectionism because that’s something inherently in me. “I’m never satisfied with where I’m at, but that’s also a huge strength of mine. It means I’m still always trying to get better. However, acknowledging where I’m at and celebrating it as I go is important too!”
For all her drive, Maia is refreshingly clear about where her talents end. Ask what she’s not good at and she says, “I’m not great at singing, not great at dancing… There are so many things!”
With no time for another hobby, her downtime goes to the people she loves.
“I like spending time with the people that are important to me whenever I have time.”
And on the days when life threatens to overwhelm her, Maia has a simple way of steadying herself.
“I’m quite intentional about reminding myself, ‘Well, what else would you want to do? Oh, nothing. OK, carry on!’”
