Brad Paisley’s wife Kimberly recalls feeling ‘invisible’ after inexplicably losing the ability to speak for years

Brad Paisley’s wife Kimberly Williams-Paisley said she inexplicably lost her ability to speak for almost two years.

The 53-year-old actress, best known for her breakthrough performance in Father of the Bride, recalled how her terrifying medical ordeal left her feeling ‘invisible’, unable to work and isolated from her loved ones.

“I felt trapped in my own body,” she said People as she reflected on her battle with muscle tension dysphonia, which left her unable to speak above a whisper.

After suddenly becoming silent because the muscles around her larynx became too tight, Williams-Paisley revealed that she was forced to turn down acting jobs and began to withdraw from family and friends.

“There was so much shame involved,” the mother of two said. ‘I felt invisible.’

As she searched for proper treatment, the performer noted that she “had to fight to be heard” and discovered that “no matter what my physical voice is,” her voice “is stronger underneath.”

‘I feel more confident. I know myself better,” Williams-Paisley explained.

Yet her progressive voice weakness affected her mental health and left her feeling ‘self-blamed’ as she assumed she was not ‘breathing properly’ or had somehow made a mistake.

‘Days when I didn’t want to do anything. Days when I was extra tired. Cycling anxiety thoughts in the middle of the night. “I wouldn’t say I had clinical depression, but I was sad,” she said.

Despite her loving social roles, she said she turned down offers because she “couldn’t be part of the conversation.”

“There were days when I grieved and sobbed,” she recalled, fearing her voice was gone forever. “I wondered, ‘Who am I without my voice?'”

During this time, she leaned on her husband, who encouraged her to do “vocal warm-up” exercises with him.

‘He’s so good at keeping me laughing. That is a gift,” she emphasized.

Additionally, their sons William Huckleberry, 16, and Jasper Warren, 14, came forward when they saw her at her “most vulnerable.”

“They were great cheerleaders for me. Seeing them hug me made me feel less lonely,” she said.

In August, she underwent laryngeal nerve surgery, which would take about five to nine hours, after being diagnosed with a partially paralyzed vocal cord.

Now her voice is ‘much better’ and she feels ’empowered’.

‘I still can’t shout on the road. And at the end of a long day of talking, I sound a little raspier than I used to, but I find that sexy,” she said enthusiastically. “And I’ve learned that if you speak softer, people lean forward, which isn’t a bad thing either.”

The experience also taught her to “never leave things unsaid” or take her “voice for granted.”

“I want to be brave in using it,” she told readers.

After her surgery, the actress admitted that it had been a “challenging” few years to overcome the damage to her laryngeal nerve.

‘I haven’t wanted to say much about it until now, because it felt too vulnerable. “I used to take for granted my ability to ‘use my voice’ – for my career, for a good cause, for a timely joke, for SELF-EXPRESSION, for a loud dinner party,” she wrote on Instagram.

“Instead, I’ve been the quietest one in the room. I have felt meek. New people I met thought I was a shy or reserved person. I felt trapped in my body,” the artist said.

Although she hasn’t been able to speak properly for the past two years, the star said she has found her voice in other ways.

‘I have healed old emotional wounds. I have learned the power and beauty of silence. I have become a serious meditator. I’m deadlifting over a hundred pounds. I take better care of my body. I manage stress. I dissolve shame. I feel more complete, stronger and more joyful,” she said.

Below her post, fans and friends flooded the comments section with supportive words from friends and fans.

Country singer Sheryl Crow called Kimberly her “hero” and said the actress taught her to “hold your strength without raising your voice, without throwing your fist in the air, but by observing and embracing what life throws at you with grace.” and resolve.”

‘Thank you for sharing this experience with all of us! You are a fierce mother warrior!” she wrote.

“I can only imagine how scary this all has been,” said another. “Thankful for finding answers and healing! It’s amazing the things we take for granted when we’re healthy… like your voice! That’s a big one. I now say a prayer for total healing!’

Kimberley’s husband Brad also commented, jokingly writing that it would be “an amazing new chapter” – although he will miss the silence.