Inspiration
Woman With One Arm And Half Legs After Her Mom’s Failed Abortion Traveled Around The World To ‘Live Life To The Fullest’
“Don’t waste that time!”
Charlie Rousseau, a 25-year-old from Canada, is a radio host born with only one arm and half her legs. But the Quebec-based’s disabilities were caused by an abortion procedure that went wrong.
Speaking about her birth, she shared with Femail, “The doctor allegedly told my parents to keep the baby even though the abortion process wasn’t finished. They could’ve taken it further. They could’ve taken the hospital to court, but we were living in a small town, and my parents didn’t want to make a big deal.”
Now an avid traveler and influencer from Rouyn-Noranda, Charlie remembered how she’s not going to let that bog her down.
In fact, she grew up a very optimistic child and said, “I never realized I had a disability until I was 16. My parents sent me to a normal school, and I had normal friends. I had a big character, so I fitted in fine. It was only when I became interested in dating, and fancying boys did I really accept my disability and that I was so different.”
She shared her dating hurdles, “When boys tried to kiss me, they had to bend down; I genuinely used to think, will I ever have a boyfriend?”
Charlie never really asked what happened until it was her mother herself who told her about it. And she shared the story, “My mother decided to have an abortion, but unfortunately, it went wrong. My parents believed making a big deal of it would ruin my life because the story would be everywhere as I was growing up.”
But Charlie’s always so positive in life and shared, “I decided I will have a boyfriend, I will live, and people will love me.”
She then found a job as a junior radio host when she turned 19, “I never had a job as a teenager because no one would give me one.”
“All my friends had part-time jobs, but I didn’t. So when I got this job at a radio station, I was overjoyed. And I love it. I think it helped build my confidence too.”
She traveled to Britain in September 2019 and taught French in schools around Shrewsbury. That incited her inner travel-nerd as she began wanting to travel to more places and, eventually, around the world. Being physically limited didn’t stop her from stepping foot in Mexico, Ibiza, Portugal, and Australia.
Charlie’s traveling experience has been positive so far, “People are very friendly everywhere; it’s wonderful to travel. If I ask people, they’re quick to help. Just live your life. Don’t waste any time.”
She started her social media accounts and began sharing things from her adventure with her family and friends. She never imagined for people to take notice of her account and began showering her with comments and following her on her journey.
During the lockdown, she had to return to Canada and shared, “I was inside in lockdown for weeks, I was just on my own, my family was very worried about me. So I flew back to Canada. I was very sad my trip came to an end.”
Charlie flew back up by Winter 2021 to Mexico and then Britain this January.
With how much technology has improved today, Charlie knew she had better options to increase her mobility, such as getting prosthetic legs. But she prefers walking on her own two feet. But she’s not about to waste too much of her time dawdling on those things.
@charlierousseau22 Qui conduit avec ses deux mains ?certainement pas moiπ ποΏΌ
β¬ son original – Charlie Rousseau
“No one knows how long they’ve got here, don’t waste that time. Make friends, go out, go to that restaurant, take that flight. Say yes!”
