Less than a month after doctors said her chances of survival were slim, Moné – a wife, mother and teacher – is already recovering, finding her strength, and writing poetry about the light that has pulled her through.
Johannesburg, South Africa (22 October 2025) – In August earlier this year, Moné hopped into an Uber after watching a rugby match with one of her best friends. It was a good day, but fate flipped the cards when a drunk driver slammed into their vehicle during a high-speed chase. He was attempting to flee the scene of a previous accident.
Moné’s immediate instinct was to resuscitate her driver, who had lost consciousness from the violent impact. Once he woke up, her attention shifted.
“I began to feel a sharp pain in my sternum and coccyx, I realized I had also hit the back of my head hard against the headrest,” she says, recounting the accident that would land up changing her life.
At the hospital, a CT scan revealed no structural damage. She was diagnosed with a mild concussion and sent home to rest for a week. But something didn’t feel right.
“As the days passed, I became increasingly forgetful and emotionally volatile, experiencing mild rage, anxiety attacks, and cognitive fog. My Neuropsychologist booked me off for a second week and I really embraced this time to truly rest, knowing how vital emotional and physical presence is for the children in my care.”
As time went by, Moné felt stronger and returned to her happy place as a Music4mini’s toddler dance and singing teacher and au pair. But after just a week of getting into her daily groove again, everything changed.
“Six weeks after the accident, on 26 September, the entire left side of my body began tingling with pins and needles. My husband rushed me to the ER, where an MRI revealed the terrifying truth: a large portion of my brain was flooded with blood.”
The initial head trauma from the accident had caused a slow brain bleed that had developed into a subdural haemorrhage. Life shifted in the blink of an eye.
Suddenly, Moné was being prepped for an emergency Craniectomy, a life-saving surgery to prevent brain damage or death. Three possible outcomes were presented to her and her husband, Marco, who were still trying to piece together the chain of events that had led them there.
The first being that she might not make it out of the surgery alive. The second being that she might survive, but with no memory and a different personality. The third, that without urgent intervention and surgery, she would likely slip into a coma and die.
None of it was easy to hear.
“There was no real choice and I begged the surgeon for just a few moments to hug my husband and my little boy,” says Mone. “As I held them, waves of emotion crashed over me and then out of the blue, my sister, Amour arrived. We embraced one another so tightly, tears streaming down our faces, not knowing if this might be the last goodbye. I wasn’t ready to leave. I wasn’t okay and the fear was overwhelming.”
Soon after, she was rushed off for an emergency operation. After almost seven hours in theatre, everything seemed stable. But then things turned.
“Post-operative cerebral edema caused my face to swell significantly and the pressure in my head was unbearable. I spent 12 agonizing hours unable to keep any pain medication down due to relentless nausea and vomiting. I was hooked up to countless ICU machines, unable to move or walk and the left side of my body was barely responsive. It felt as if my left hand belonged to someone else,” she shares.
At this point, Moné felt completely disconnected from herself, like a stranger in her own body. Then her mind began to play tricks, as she entered what she now recounts as the scariest chapter of her life.
“The darkest hallucinations haunted me, vivid and relentless. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t will myself back into the light. I’ve always known myself to be a positive person, but in those moments, all hope felt unreachable.”
In her darkest hours, it was Moné’s real-life angels who forced her to choose the light. Friends and family showed up in numbers. They reminded her of every reason she needed to fight, and that’s exactly what she did.
Days later, a second emergency procedure was performed. This time, a ventricular drain was inserted to relieve the fluid buildup in her brain. Recovery brought another storm of hallucinations, but Moné’s world, slowly but surely, began to settle again.
In the process, she had completely defied the frightening odds first presented to her.
“From that moment on, I began to recover and by Day 16 I was finally able to slowly start walking again without any assistance. The medical team was so astonished by my turnaround that their biggest concern was that I might try to escape! And honestly, they weren’t wrong — I was feeling more like myself than I had in weeks, and I was desperate to get back to my almost 2-year-old son and my incredible husband, who I’d had to leave behind so suddenly.”
Feeling more like herself, Moné spent her remaining days in the ICU, lying awake at night, thinking of her loved ones. The kind souls who had stepped in with strength and grace when she was at her weakest. It was entirely overwhelming, but the light began to creep back in as she realised how love had carried her that far already.
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“On 15 October, I was transferred to Netcare Auckland Park Rehabilitation Hospital for three weeks of intensive, specialised therapy. This marked the start of my transition from survival to healing — from crisis to recovery,” she says.
Moné has just wrapped up her first week in brain trauma rehab. She’s receiving multidisciplinary treatment for her traumatic brain injury, working with a team of physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, a social worker, a family counsellor and her neuropsychologist. After being discharged, she will continue treatment as an outpatient to fully recover.
In less than a month, this remarkable woman has gone from a life-shattering prognosis to writing poetry about the light that has pulled her out of it. We could not be in more awe.
This week, Moné celebrated her birthday in the hospital. Her wardmates woke her up with songs and gifts!
“I am so amazed by the care I have received by Waterfall City Netcare, Auckland Park Rehabilitation Hospital and Discovery,” she says.
Next to her bedside lies a rainbow gifted to her by her sister, reminding her of every good thing that has helped her hang on.
The road ahead
Though the road is long,
I choose to walk in light —
Upheld by all the love that makes my path so bright.
Every doctor, every nurse,
My family and friends —
You’ve given me the strength to heal, to rise and not give in.May I seize each moment and run towards the light
So grateful for my every breath, the future shines so bright
Sources: Supplied
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