007. Finding Grace, Balance and Beauty in a Life without Sound: Monique Williamson and Life After Deaf

Life After Deaf: Finding Grace, Balance, and Beauty in a Life Without Sound with Monique Williamson 

Episode 07: Show Notes.

 

Can you imagine what it’s like waking up one morning to find that you can no longer hear? What raising two children, running a business, and being a new wife must be like when you have to navigate a whole new (silent) world? Our guest today, Monique Williamson, talks to us about how she advocated through the healthcare system and managed to find fulfillment in life after going deaf. She shares her traumatic experience with persistent vertigo, undergoing every test and therapy in the book, and leaving the hospital with no answers for years. When her hearing failed to return, she eventually opted for cochlear implants, which changed her life and facilitated hearing in her one ear. But, after numerous consequent health problems and misdiagnoses, it was later discovered that the severe ulcers in her throat and colon were caused by Crohn’s disease. What stands out from the conversation is Monique’s appeal to listeners about being their own advocates when it comes to their health, testifying to the many slip-ups the doctors and nurses had made during her five years of suffering. Our guest also talks about how she stays positive and why it is so important to keep focused on what you have rather than what you’ve lost in the most difficult periods of life. 

 

Key Points From This Episode:

 

• An introduction to Monique: her age, kids, and the qualities that she is known for. 
• Combing her knowledge of home renovations and selling in her role as a realtor.  
• Learn about some of Monique’s entrepreneurial endeavors and the goals she had for her life. 
• Her most terrifying experiences of vertigo, losing her hearing, and being misdiagnosed.
• What it was like undergoing numerous therapies and tests from various doctors. 
• Monique’s physical and mental state on the day of her ‘dream’ wedding. 
• The difficulty of asking for help and being vulnerable as a type-A personality. 
• Deciding to go for a cochlear implant despite the risks or what it looked like. 
• The many other complications Monique suffered in addition to losing her hearing. 
• The events leading up to doctors discovering ulcers in her colon and diagnosing her with Crohn’s disease. 
• The importance of advocating for yourself and pushing people to not give up on you. 
• Why she had one of her kidneys removed and how it impacted her high blood pressure. 
• Monique shares how she has managed to take care of her mental health. 
• Why, despite the years of trauma, she would not change anything about what happened. 
• How your life and sense of fulfillment changes when you begin to focus on the positive. 
• Daily practices for staying grateful, letting go of negativity, and learning to love your body. 

 

Tweetables:

 

“One of the things that I believe is that there are absolutely no accidents in life. Everything happens and it is purposeful, and if you ask, you do receive.” — Monique Williamson [0:05:50]

 

“You really don’t understand that deafness is a silent disability and nobody understands how important it is to be able to communicate and hear.” — Monique Williamson [0:12:55]

 

“No one can tell me why I went deaf.” — Monique Williamson [0:14:54]

 

“Even though I have been through so much, I am out of it. I am in remission. So, I have to dwell on what I have. That keeps me from going into a depressed state.” — Monique Williamson [0:23:40] 

 

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

 

Monique Williamson 

Monique Williamson on Instagram

Life After Death

Britt Anderson

Britt Anderson on Instagram

 

 

_________________________

After years of bringing MOMS together by hosting evening get-togethers over glasses of wine, no kids or partners and a whole lot of common complaints, Brittany decided it was time to bring her female driven topics and #momdiscoveries to the podcasting platform. Here she talks all things life, health, fitness, kids, relationships – you name it, nothing is off the table! Diving deeper into all things motherhood & womanhood, she interviews some incredible guests finding tips and tricks, parenting hacks and longevity tips to make the most of our lives while keeping our sanity in check! It's time to get real, let go of the expectations we feel from the outside and begin to live a life of fulfillment. Show yourself some self love and take some selfcare time to listen in weekly!
show notes found at www.momsweatsanity.com