The MiMi YouYou Show - Creating Empathy

Can you ever overcome the loss of your children? Does time ever really heal anything at all? Are we all getting "grief all wrong" and what does this mean?

Our guests today shares the story of the tragic accident that saw his teenage children, Ruby and Hart, killed by a drunk driver just four years ago. He honestly recounts his journey to share this experience widely with others to help more people understand grief in ways that society doesn't talk about.

With themes of isolation, loneliness and forgiveness (can you ever forgive the person who killed your children?) and the stereotypes around grief, he offers profound wisdom and experience around the grieving process. He shares how the media has played a role in a cultural understanding of grief that is not supportive of our need to honour, love and name those we have lost.

He shares the power of using the names of the dead and why the phrase "I have no words" can be the most unsettling and uncomfortable of all.

Is there such a thing of "fairness" in life and if not, how do we face life's greatest tragedies and continue living for the future? He shares how we might live around the "holes in our heart" to accept new love and experiences.

Tune in to this incredibly powerful and open story. Our guests shares with an open and incredibly well articulated wisdom that can help so many in pain, or living with those experiencing tragic loss.

You can follow our guest Colin here @colincampbellwriter and find his book at www.colincampbellauthor.com

Colin now has his own solo show making waves around the world: www.griefaonemanshitshow.com

Colin and his wife Gail created a foundation in honor of their children, Ruby and Hart. It raises money to send free books and their authors to underserved schools. Support their work here: https://rubyandhartfoundation.com/

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When you dream of having a baby you don't often stop to wonder what that dream really entails.

For many new mothers post natal depression is an unexpected and often unknown reality of becoming a mum. Our guest in this episode shares her journey as the sadness she felt postpartum led her all the way to hospitalised care. Within a traditional community, that found the reality hard to understand, she shares how she accessed the help she needed. Surrounded by endless advice from relatives (none of which was that she should seek professional help) our guest shares her road to finding her health and joy again.

Balancing themes of professional identity, the role of becoming a wife and mother in the more traditional Arab world and the critical reality of isolation and loneliness, she allows us to empathise the strength, braveness and sadness that comes with the truth of motherhood. 

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"Mummy, who will die first, me or my cousin?"

Losing a child is reality that many people feel they could never survive. In this episode our guest talks us through her own journey facing the acute illness and loss of her young daughter. She recounts the conversations they had around life and death, and how terminal illness becomes a "truth serum" that leads to living life consciously connected to the things you love. She talks about pain and laughter and how they intertwine, and the complex balance of parenting one very sick child and another healthy child who has had their life thrown upside down as all energies focus on the recovery of their sibling.

She introduces us to a social educational concept called "The Circle of Love" and how this deeply African concept went from being a local school project to becoming a way she would live her life.

In listening to our guest, she teaches us that spending time with a child who is dying is a the secret to finding the true joy of living in the moment and she share how rare disease completely changes the way you see the role of community and friendship. She shares the unexpected meeting of strangers, the generosity of people all over the world and how a very special group of doctors rallied around her family.

Her story takes an additional turn when her niece is also diagnosed with a terminal illness in her teens, and how as a mother and aunt, she faces the unimaginable question from her daughter, "mummy, who will die first, me or my cousin?"

A difficult story which teaches us deep empathy for the journey and strength that comes with parenthood and supporting the people we love, and the power of generosity and conversation when facing life's most difficult moments.

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A mum of three joins the show to talk about the realities, opportunities and challenges associated with being the mum to teenagers who she terms as "Wonderfully Wired" - which she uses to refer to her own children, and those of others, who experience giftedness or neurodiversity in some form.

She bravely unpacks how learning for children with neurodiversity is often seen as a draw back but that in her opinion it also comes with powerful viewpoints and talents that can be missed if we are not looking carefully. She shares with us to the "gifts" of dyslexia and how labels can deeply reframe our mindset introducing us to the term 'trade off weaknesses.'

Hear our guest speak about the parenthood identity (and pressure) that we place on ourselves, how we navigate teen life and identity, and how we make decisions around our school systems that often don't fit children on the neurodiverse journey. She raises some poignant questions around what our children need, how we address these as parents and the type of support we can offer them. She questions what the message is that neurodiverse children are getting in school, and how this impacts their own self image and confidence.

Raw and honest, with a profound professional opinion to back up this story, tune on in. Not only will you understand a unique and calm perspective on our role and capacity as mothers, but you will gain powerful insights into parenthood of teens and how to raise gifted children in a whole new light.

If you want to hear more about coping strategies, research and opportunities in remedial care, progress and encouragement for neurodiverse children check out www.wonderfullywired.online or follow wonderfullywiredbyelle on Instagram.

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When you lose someone close to you it often prompts us to reconsider "what would I do if I knew my own days were numbered?" In this episode our guest asked himself this exact question and decided that whilst he had loved his corporate life, it was time for a change and he headed on a sabbatical to train as a Field Guide on a safari camp in Africa.

When his year ended he wasn't ready to come home and his journey into a brand new culture - with wild animals and local staff alike - took flight, changing his future forever.

Taking the isolation and reflection as a gift he reviewed his previous life choices and decided that a life in Africa, and the people within it, had brought him a whole new perspective on life within his new identity as a "Brit in The Bush". As his journey continued he encountered a magical street dog, Rita, who "became obsessed with me" and changed his life forever. Against all of our guests prior plans, Rita decides to adopt him (!) and in so doing significantly changes his outlook, his work and even his home.

On a new journey, with Rita the dog in tow, our guest shares life lessons and the secret power of dogs in changing and healing our lives.

If you would like to support South African street dogs and create more happy endings like Rita's please check out https://oscarsarc.org/ and donate today.

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Music Credits:  https://ncs.io/PLHome NCS / NoCopyrightSounds: Empowering Creators through No Copyright & Royalty Free Music

Kicking off Season 2 with a never seen before format, this show features two family members together, openly discussing their journey with transgender identity, acceptance and confidence. As the daughter of the family, a young woman shares her journey to finding her identity as a female, having being born a male, and takes us through a candid explanation of her reality to get to this moment. Her father joins her to share his perspective and experience of that same path and talks to the complexities in their conservative family and community, as well as the emotional pain of losing a son (and his birth name) whilst celebrating the joy of gaining a daughter. We touch on religion, judgement and the role of community as well as the power of honesty and courage. This show is, raw, deeply eye opening and full of inspiring and smile prompting moments. These stories deserve to be heard and the world needs to start listening.

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Driven by his passion for mental health, a young professional steps out to gain practical experience after earning his psychology degree. Amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, fate leads him to an opportunity to work with refugees, where he encounters an entirely parallel community living in his city. Deeply moved by their plight, he witnesses firsthand the diverse array of issues they grapple with as they build a new life in Malaysia. Of the many realities he discovers he unpacks the unfair stereotypes that people place on refugees, as well as the powerful emotional overwhelm for refugee professionals as they leave senior roles at home and move into blue collar roles after escaping their countries. This episode gives a new level of understanding into a community that is so often forgotten.

Help create a difference by supporting the work on NGO's who are helping refugee women and children where they need it most: https://dignityforchildren.org

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In this episode a young man shares his story of his struggles with a debilitating stutter throughout his childhood, feeling trapped and voiceless in his own body. Feeling a failure and amidst peak puberty and relentless teasing, he longs for change and looks ahead for a time when he can stand up and finally share his opinion.

Fate intervenes and his family relocates from the UAE to India, where he is forced to adapt and confront his fears head on in a whole new way. He shares his determination to find his voice and build his confidence, pushing himself beyond his limits and overcoming huge obstacles to become a stronger person and find his voice.

Later he faced again with huge change but this time, he welcomes it and experiences a remarkable change, finding his voice and sharing it with audiences widely for the first time ever. Inspiring and empowering this story will drive you to sit in the shoes of a stutterer head on.

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In this extremely emotional and unique episode, you will step into the world of a new mother just two days after giving birth, as she shares her unbelievable story for the first time ever.

Having just given birth to her baby boy, her days postpartum are thrown into turmoil when a brain tumor diagnosis shatters her reality and leads her to a journey of tenacity as she fights to find Dr's who will take her case, visas to allow her to travel to reach them and the financial and emotional demands to make it all a reality. Determined to survive, she undergoes a risky surgery in the UK, a country far from home, defying the odds of death or paralysis to ensure she can continue to be a mother for her children.

Her resilience pays off as she wakes from surgery, albeit with less of her senses than she had before, and a life changing diagnosis for her hearing. As life moved seemingly back to normal, a second diagnosis throws her journey back into trauma. Only this time the diagnosis is not for her but her baby.

Amidst the chaos of the Covid pandemic, she goes on a harrowing journey, racing against time to save her baby boy's life. The rest of the story remains in the episode so tune in and hear her out. This show will not only drive your empathy, but your emotions, as you follow this mother's journey of strength, resilience and unimaginable braveness.

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In a dimly lit nightclub, our guest once danced to the rhythm of the night as a DJ. Little did he know, that the same rhythm would lead him down a long path of anxiety, addiction, and escapism. Seeking refuge from the darkness, he traded neon lights for the comforting aroma of the coffee, opening his own store and hoping to escape the demons of the drugs he had discovered in the night hours.

Unfortunately, the reality of running a business caused infinitely more stress which led him into a far more habitual addiction to the drugs he saw as his 'way out'. Battling his demons, and after eventually opening up to his loved ones, he ignited a flicker of hope toward recovery - just before the pandemic left him home alone to fight for his future. Tune in and hear how overcoming the drugs themselves was only just the beginning. Listen to what life as an addict truly feels like and how living with the addiction will shift your life forever.

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