Meet Rebecca Johnson

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Johnson. Rebecca was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Tiphany Kane.

Rebecca, thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
I’m no stranger to loss. I feel like I’ve been losing my entire life. Little losses here and there, but it’s the bigger losses I’ve experienced over the past 5 years that have really impacted my life. Death and the fear of death have inspired me to live. We all lose people we love to death. For me I lost my grandparents at a younger age but thought this was the natural course of things and didn’t really understand the grieving process. I didn’t understand the significance of loss until my parental grandmother died. I lost the one person in my life that I felt loved me unconditionally. The one person I could go to with anything. The one person that made me feel special and seen. She was also the glue that held our family together, so with her loss my family scattered. I lost more than just her, and I felt alone with no one to turn to. This started a tiny hole in my heart.
It was many years later until I experienced death again. But this time it was not the natural order of things. This loss was all wrong, unexplainable, and incomprehensible. My best friend’s son (my Godson) was shot and killed. A young man so full of love and light taken in such a tragic way makes you question everything. I was grieving yes, but my focus was on my best friend. I could feel the tiny hole in my heart grow, but it was ignored. Figuring out how to support my friend during grief was more important than understanding my own.
Just six months later my husband died unexpectedly. The tables were turned. If was now me who was crippled with grief. I was beginning to truly understand the impact of loss and was not prepared for the depths of despair that grief was about to take me. The hole in my heart felt like someone was ripping it open. I was truly lucky to have my best friend by my side the entire time. They say grief bonds people. I would have never imagined that our friendship could transcend any further until then. Grieving and supporting each other during this time was more bittersweet than I could have ever imagined.
I had just enough time to bury my husband and go back to work before I was given more devastating news. This time I was faced with death of my own. I was diagnosed with a rare eye cancer with no cure, Ocular Melanoma. Once again, my grief was placed on hold as I was forced to go into survival mode to care for myself. Since this is an aggressive cancer decision had to be made quickly. My right eye was removed, but not before the cancer had spread and I had to undergo radiation treatment. From this point on I would live my life scan to scan with the fear of dying. Consumed with the thought of my own death and family and friends grieving my loss only made the hole in my heart grow more. But this time I could feel it getting darker.
As soon as I felt my life had some normalcy, more devastating news. My brother dies. Out of all the death I have experienced, this was by far the worse. I felt my heart rip all the way open to the seams to the point that God himself would have to heal it. This loss would be my breaking point. My brother and I had a love-hate relationship, but what siblings don’t? He was my very first friend and regardless he was the best brother I could ever ask for.
I used to hate sharing my story. I thought it was sad and depressing because I was sad and depressed. I couldn’t see myself the way others did. I was told you are strong, you are brave, you are a warrior, you are inspiring. I didn’t feel like any of these things. I felt exhausted, defeated, and hopeless. I was relying on a fake it until you make it attitude. Luckily, I had a few close friends that would not let me give up. They were constantly providing me with the tools I needed to find my way through the darkness.
A friend took me to Tulum Mexico on a women’s wellness retreat. It was shortly after my brother died so I wasn’t in the best mental state. There I met the most amazing group of women in my life. Everyone with a story that was so inspiring. This trip was truly a healing experience. I began to see the light that everyone talks about. I was so drawn to some of these women that I cultivated friendships that would last a lifetime. It was one of these women that encouraged me to do a podcast.
This was the beginning of Love is not dead, Just my husband!

Please talk to us about your creative work and career. What should we know?
I am just now venturing on this exciting career path as an Indie Podcaster. I do not want to repeat what other widow podcasts are doing. We hear the same positive encouraging words but said differently. I want to explore how being a widow can be a catalyst for change. I want to break the stereotypes of widows and encourage widows and widowers to actually “widow their own way”. No matter how many times we are told there is no right or wrong way to grieve, there is still something that holds us back. Judgement! Judgement is holding us back. I want to share out of the ordinary stories and triumphs of widows and widowers. I want to give a platform for widows and widowers that suffered from unhappy or abusive marriages and are relieved the marriage is over. I want to be real about the struggles of widows and widowers finding happiness and love again. We are more than widows and widowers; we are people just like trying to find out way through life. Becoming a widow or widower is unfortunate, but it should not define us.

So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Tiphany Kane and KaSa Media Productions and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with KaSa Media Productions.
I’m almost embarrassed to say I had no clue what a podcast was before I got started. A friend of mine was sending me podcasts episodes and I thought they were recordings of a webinar she attended. Once I figure it out I was hooked. I was no longer watching TV or listening to music. I only wanted to hear someone talk, sharing amazing stories of love, inspiration, and survival. It still took me awhile to say yes to the idea. Once I finally made the decision to start my own podcast there was no stopping me! I did as much as I could for free. I dove online and into YouTube videos absorbing every bit of information I could. I had a notebook dedicated to podcasting until I knew that I would have to start paying for the information. At first, I started with someone small, and it was informative. I was finally getting somewhere but it still felt vague. I decided to join a podcast bootcamp for a very well know podcaster. It set me on fire, but I was still hesitant. It was a large investment, and I was feeling like I wouldn’t get the attention I needed. I was scared to be a little fish in a large pond.
That is where I met Tiphany Kane. With every post she made I was intrigued. Tiphany was so positive and encouraging. I could feel sincerity in her words. I was drawn to her energy and excitement of podcasting. I started to stalk her online immediately. I found her podcast, Mastering the Podcast Mindset. I loved her personality and her approach to podcasting. She was giving more free information on her podcast than I ever found online.
After bingeing the Mastering the Podcast Mindset podcast for days, I decided to send a message about her Launching and Leveraging the Podcast course. She replied immediately. Something I wasn’t expecting. She sent me the information about the program, and I already knew my one question. What do you mean by one-on-one attention? The ding from the reply was within seconds. Can you talk? I was floored! I wasn’t even expecting to be able to speak with someone, let alone Tiphany herself.
I didn’t want my conversation with Tiphany to end. Once again, I was impressed about the amount of knowledge she gave me in a single conversation. I let her know how much I had learned so far but felt like I was missing the meat and potatoes!
I shared my story with Tiphany but also let her know that I’m not sure what I’m trying to accomplish. She was so supportive and said she believed in my story and that I would help a lot of people. Again, not sure I’m seeing the bigger picture, but I felt confident in my decision to sign up that very minute. Tiphany assured me I would launch my podcast in 6 weeks. I was up for the challenge.
One of the things that impressed me about Tiphany was her transparency and honesty. She let me know podcasting is not easy. It’s hard work and takes dedication and passion. This is also wanted I needed to hear. A reminder of what’s to come. I soon found out that podcasting is not as easy as a lot of seasoned podcasters make you think. I now question every podcaster that says they started in a closet with a phone and pressing record. There is way more to it than that.
During the Launching and Leveraging course I faced a lot of challenges. I thought this was going to be a funny podcast with stories of dating as a widow. Instead, I found my voice. I found a way to express my true feelings about being a widow. It was more than I ever expected. During this process, for the first time ever I was feeling myself healing.
When it got close to the launch date, I had difficulty. There were a lot of emotions and a lot of important dates. It was my wedding anniversary, I had cancer scans and it was the one-year anniversary of my brother’s death. I had to take the time I needed to grieve and get through this tough time. Everyone was so supportive and understanding, but they also refused to let me give up on this dream. I worked so hard and came so far to give up now. I was able to successfully launch my podcast and it was the beginning of a new life for me!
Not only did I learn the tools I needed from the Launching and Leveraging Podcast course, but their Membership group for Mastering the Podcast Mindset is a community of constant encouragement and accountability. It is a combination of new and seasoned podcasters with a variety of backgrounds and experiences that provide you with unbelievable resources. Tiphany hosts masterclasses that are not only valuable but relevant focusing on a growing podcast.
I look forward to continuing to work with Tiphany professionally and personally; as my coach, a mentor, and as a fella podcaster.

 

Website: https://linktr.ee/loveisnotdead_justmyhusband

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loveisnotdead_justmyhusband/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-johnson-56680a14a/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loveisnotdeadjustmyhusband

Image Credits
Kasteel Studios Tiene Holsonback Wilmington, NC