Brad Paisley’s wife, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, has spoken out about unexplained loss of her ability to speak for almost two years.
The 53-year-old actress, best known for her breakout performance in Father of the Bride, recalled how her medical ordeal left her feeling “invisible,” unable to work and isolated from loved ones.
“I felt trapped in my own body,” she said. People as she reflects on her battle with muscle tension dysphonia, which left her unable to speak above a whisper.
After suddenly becoming silenced due to the muscles around her voice box becoming too tight, Williams-Paisley revealed that she was forced to turn down acting jobs and began withdrawing from family and friends.
“There was so much shame involved,” the mother of two said. “I felt invisible.”
While seeking 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 “underneath is stronger.”
Brad Paisley’s wife, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, spoke out about unexplained loss of her ability to speak for almost two years; seen in 2021
‘I feel safer. “I know myself better,” Williams-Paisley explained.
Still, her advanced vocal weakness affected her mental health and led her to “self-blame” as she assumed she was not “breathing properly” or was somehow to blame.
‘Days when I didn’t want to do anything. Days when I was very tired. Cyclical anxious thoughts in the middle of the night. “I wouldn’t say I had clinical depression, but I was sad,” he said.
Despite loving social functions, he said he turned down offers because he “couldn’t be part of the conversation.”
“There were days when I grieved and sobbed,” she recalled, fearing her voice was gone forever. “I asked myself, ‘Who am I without my voice?’
During this time, she leaned on her husband, who encouraged her to join him in “vocal warm-up” exercises.
‘He’s very good at making me laugh. That’s a gift,’ he emphasized.
Additionally, her sons William Huckleberry, 16, and Jasper Warren, 14, stepped forward when they saw her at her “most vulnerable.”
The 53-year-old actress, best known for her breakout performance in Father of the Bride, recalled how her medical ordeal left her feeling “invisible,” unable to work and isolated from loved ones (pictured in 2023).
“They were big cheerleaders for me. Seeing them hugging me made me feel less alone,” she said.
In August, he underwent a laryngeal nerve procedure, said to last between five and nine hours, after he was 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 talking, I’ll sound a little hoarser than before, but I think that’s sexy,” she enthused. “And I’ve learned that when you speak softer, people lean in, which isn’t bad either.”
Experience has 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.
In August, he underwent a laryngeal nerve procedure, said to last between five and nine hours, after he was diagnosed with a partially paralyzed vocal cord.
Now her voice is “much better” and she feels “empowered”
After her surgery, the actress admitted it had been a “challenging” couple of years overcoming the damage to her laryngeal nerve.
‘I hadn’t wanted to share much about this until now because it seemed 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,” he wrote on Instagram.
‘Instead, I have been the quietest one in the room. I have felt meek. New people I met thought I was a shy or reserved person. I have felt trapped in my body,’ shared the interpreter.
While she couldn’t speak properly for the past two years, the star said she found her voice in other ways.
‘I have healed old emotional wounds. I have learned the strength and beauty of silence. I have become a serious meditator. I’m deadlifting over a hundred pounds. I’m taking better care of my body. I’m managing the stress. I’m dissolving shame. “I feel more complete, empowered and joyful,” she gushed.
After her surgery, the actress admitted it had been a “challenging” couple of years overcoming the damage to her laryngeal nerve. Pictured with her husband, country singer Brad Paisley.
Below her post, fans and friends flooded the comments section with words of support from friends and fans.
Below her post, fans and friends flooded the comments section with words of support from friends and fans.
Country singer Sheryl Crow called Kimberly her ‘hero’ and said the actress taught her to ‘hold your power without raising your voice, without throwing your fist in the air, but by observing and embracing what life hands you with grace and determination’.
‘Thank you for sharing this experience with all of us! You’re a fierce warrior mother!’ she wrote.
“I can only imagine how scary this whole thing has been,” another chimed in. ‘I am grateful that you have found answers and are healing! It’s amazing the things we take for granted when we’re healthy… like your voice! That one is very big. Saying a prayer now for complete healing!’
Kimberley’s husband Brad also jokingly commented that it will be “a great new chapter,” although he will miss the silence.