The KwaZulu-Natal mother, who has a teenage daughter, collapsed two days after being bitten while at her daughter's school function. She felt like her hands and feet were on fire.
She was taken to hospital and put into a two-week coma while doctors carried out the amputation of her limbs. Four years later not only has she made a miraculous recovery from what was supposed to be a fatal infection — surviving at least 66 reconstructive surgeries — she has bounced back into public life, not to tell her story, but to help others who faced similar life adversities share their stories and motivate others.
This week the 37-year-old quadruple amputee released a short documentary about her life, and also premiered the first episode of her own inspiring talk show, The Shan Show, where she interviewed Costa Carastavrakis, a man who went from being addicted to crystal meth to a successful author, comedian, actor, and motivational speaker.
From a young age Carastavrakis battled addiction to cigarettes, alcohol and later drugs. Brought to his knees by a crippling drug addiction he eventually found a path of recovery. With it came a new quest: to create the best version of himself.