c9b6bpyjexmbffmo673iu5cxxwmt122.57 KBAfter my stroke, everything changed. My body struggled, my speech slipped away, and sometimes… so did my calm. Aphasia took over like an invisible weight. Words that once came so naturally now sat just out of reach. I found myself screaming at times—not out of anger, but from frustration, confusion, and pain. Sometimes, even I didn’t know why.
There I was—lying on a mat in the middle of nature, clutching a bowl of vegetables like it was a bowl of gold. A fork in one hand, a mouthful mid-air, and the breeze brushing against my face. No fancy cutlery. No five-star restaurant. Just me, the mountains, a forkful of greens… and peace.
And you know what?
It was perfect.
This photo might not win any photography awards. My hair’s wild, the bowl’s metal, and the mat has definitely seen better days. But this...
2gmakb822g8a2asrqnq0lckikv0y141.92 KBFight for Your Fairytale
Not all fairytales begin with “once upon a time.” Some begin in the middle of chaos. Some start with a diagnosis. Some are buried under heartbreak, setbacks, or silence. But just because your story didn’t start like a dream doesn’t mean it can’t end like one. I used to think fairytales were only for other people—the ones untouched by pain, those who seemed to walk through life with ease and perfect timing. But life taught me...
9hnhh784zd8a05eraurol23xxz0l1.04 MBThe funny thing about getting older? Your eyesight gets worse, but your bullshit radar gets razor sharp.
Seriously. I may not be able to read the back of a cereal box without stretching my arm like Mr. Fantastic, but I can sniff out fake vibes from across the room.
In my younger days, I believed people. Smiles meant sincerity. Big talk meant big hearts. Titles meant wisdom. I was practically a walking “Benefit of the Doubt.”
After my stroke, the world didn’t just change—it distorted.
Words I once had at my fingertips suddenly vanished.
Thoughts became trapped behind walls I couldn’t break down.
I had so much to say… but I couldn’t get the words out.
I live with aphasia now. It’s not just about struggling to speak—it’s about the anxiety, the fear of not being understood, the sadness of being left out of conversations I used to lead.
jio2r71nupzv9opb9v8s98lmrxvs324.25 KB(A stroke survivor's guide to sweating, paddling, and laughing through it all)
This Saturday, I geared up for my second dragon boat practice. That is right — Round Two. But nothing could quite prepare us for what felt like paddling in a sauna. Singapore’s sun was on full blast, and I believe I sweated more before getting into the boat than during the actual practice. With an all-star lineup: Maya Lightchaser, Melvin Lemon Beery, Dawn Poh, Rick, my Queen ...
Yesterday, I went for a check-up with Dr Moses. He walked in, looked at me, squinted a little… and then said the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard in my entire life: “You look different. Did you lose weight?” I could’ve cried on the spot. I wanted to frame that moment. Bottle it. Autotune it and make it my ringtone. And then I said, “Yes, Doc… 3 kilograms.” (That’s three. solid. kilos.) Before I even saw him, I went...
4a5zldmk5bpnlk9bm5j4xb9qr4f13.45 MBI recently had a truly meaningful and inspiring meeting with Dennis — a friend and kindred creative spirit. We spoke about something deeply personal to me: turning my journey into a stage play.
What began as private healing through writing after my stroke in 2020 — when I was faced with aphasia and the emotional weight of disability — has slowly transformed into something much larger. It’s no longer just my story. It’s becoming a voice for many who have been...
4s03qgig8jbe2ss7ysd4u743bahg117.4 KBPeople will rewrite your story.
They’ll crop out the struggles.
Mute your silence.
Polish your pain until it fits into their version of who they think you are — or who they want you to be.
But here’s the thing: you kept the original file.
The raw version.
The one with the broken sentences, the blurry paragraphs, the parts where you cried mid-sentence, where you paused too long trying to breathe through the hurt.
dhoffx0s3iqvjnlaqaq2ousuja6g2.75 MBChange doesn’t always knock politely. Sometimes, it kicks down the door, barges in uninvited, and rearranges everything you thought you knew.
I know this all too well.
When I suffered a stroke in 2020, change didn’t just visit—it took over my body, my speech, my independence, my life. In those early moments, I didn’t see transformation. I saw loss. I saw pain. I saw fear. I saw a future I no longer recognized.
But here’s what I’ve come to understand: change is...
ide150wpwzd01m32in8y495qjkc02.84 MBThere was a time not too long ago when the future looked bleak. In 2020, I suffered a stroke so severe that doctors told me I might not survive. It was as if the world pressed pause—and then tried to erase me completely. But as life often reminds us, even the worst storms can reveal a sunrise worth waiting for.
I didn’t just survive. I chose to live—magnificently, beautifully, and yes… imperfectly.
In the beginning, it wasn’t easy. My right hand, once...
So here’s how it went down—literally. My new physical trainer, Jack, decided that the gym wasn’t challenging enough. Apparently, air-conditioning and padded floors are for softies. So, off we went to the exercise corner at my apartment. You know, the one I used to casually stroll past thinking, “This corner isn’t for me. Irrelevant.” Plot twist: it is now very relevant. Jack introduced me to something called TRX....
jw7a82r3nmdp8srebanr0t3nytcl82.06 KBLet’s be real — life isn’t always neat, tidy, or picture-perfect.
Sometimes it’s a beautiful disaster — spilled coffee on your shirt, missed appointments, awkward conversations, hospital visits, and emotions that don’t fit into a box.
And yet, somehow, that mess?
That’s where the magic is.
Perfection is a Performance — Not Reality
Before my stroke, I chased perfection.
I wanted to be sharp, articulate, capable — always in control.
drln7gdsxg0z7vmgsllqpmm1owvd117.47 KB Most of us fear endings.
We see them as loss. As failure.
As doors shutting, dreams dissolving, or time running out.
But what if we changed the way we see endings?
What if we saw them the way we see sunsets?
That moment in the photo—just me, standing quietly as the sun dipped beneath the skyline—wasn’t planned. I didn’t go out chasing a perfect shot or a profound thought. But as the sky glowed with warm colours, something in me softened. Something finally...
7sllgkbrehzrgogjel8x5mm9vsgv147.48 KBSo… I fell. Yep. Not the dramatic, slow-motion, Oscar-winning kind. Just a regular, not-so-graceful, "Oops-did-anyone-see-that" type of fall. Thankfully, it wasn’t serious—unless you count the bruised ego and the awkward shuffle into therapy afterward.
I showed up thinking I’d get the usual pep talk, a few stretches, maybe some ultrasound. But my therapist had other plans. He rolled in with a thing. Not just any thing—this metallic, spring-loaded...
xq8c589iykyehne46in3vv22mw0e121.74 KBEach morning, we rise with silent hopes. We expect kindness, productivity, understanding — maybe even a miracle or two. These expectations give our day direction and purpose.
But as time passes, life rarely sticks to the script.
Instead, it surprises us.
Some plans fall apart. Others come together better than we imagined. Sometimes we feel stretched. Sometimes lifted. At the end of it all, what we truly carry with us is not whether the day met our...
99dqas1x5xhfg8epjikkifxz0w5h290.15 KBSo… what’s PILOXING? I thought it was a new café drink, but no—it’s the hot new way to sweat, laugh, and possibly fall over your own feet (in style).
Thanks to Singapore National Stroke Association, I found myself in a room full of laughter, loud music, and people punching the air like Rocky Balboa with a kopi-o kosong on their heads. I’m not even joking.
Enter Rasidah Caudal—aka Kakspiration—the Senior Master Trainer, STOTT Mat Pilates expert, ACE Senior...
