Ep. 135 – When My Body Broke Down – But Motherhood Didn’t Pause with Evonne

Host Rashidah sits down with Evonne Rooks, an autism mom from Richmond, Virginia, who shares her son AJ’s autism diagnosis in January 2023 following speech regression after COVID, her initial shock, and how ABA therapy helped her move forward.

Six months later, Evonne sought ER care for what she thought was a severe migraine; imaging revealed major brain swelling and an MRI confirmed a massive left cerebellum stroke that had occurred two days earlier and covered about 75% of the region, nearly costing her life.

She describes hospitalization, ongoing therapies, stress, the need to advocate for herself, building community support, and encouraging moms to decompress, spread responsibilities out, and take symptoms seriously.
In this episode, we discuss:
00:00 Badass Moms Welcome
00:54 When Your Body Breaks
01:55 Meet Evonne Rooks
03:57 AJ Diagnosis Journey
07:51 Therapy and Survival Mode
10:26 Headache Warning Signs
14:06 ER Scan and Transfer
15:58 Massive Stroke Reality
19:53 Recovery No Breaks
23:52 Work, Therapy and Limits
28:51 Stress Lessons and Healing
31:24 Living Not Surviving
31:46 Mental Therapy and Trauma
32:36 Time Critical Stroke Care
34:21 Headaches and Hospital Visits
36:30 Autism Stress and Support
37:33 Building Mom Community
41:57 Self Care and Decompression
47:17 Single Mom Resource Tips
50:08 Finding Yvonne Online
51:08 AJ Confidence and Joy
55:56 Advocating in Healthcare
01:00:26 Final Takeaways
Connect with Evonne:
Be sure to follow Evonne and stay connected.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/xo_vonne
Facebook: Evonne Rooks
TikTok: itsvonnieee
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