AFTER a recent update (jan18 2020) problem with samsung curve monitor

Sorry but I am a new ubuntu bionic beaver user so I will try my best to word this issue
For some reason, I no longer have control of

1/ the "screen display" (it's locked it seems) all I get now is an "unknown display"/ orientation: landscape /resolution 1024 x 768 (4:3) and no way to change it :(

2/ a "default monitor" is now in place of MY monitor (Samsung curve) with no way to change any settings (My monitor isn't showing up in any lists for sound or screen settings. I did not make this change.

3/I can no longer hear any sound out of my monitor ..only thru my headset (pulse audio doesn't have my monitor in its list now either as output or input device as far as i can see at the moment )
I STRONGLY SUSPECT A BUG ..as everything was fine until I accepted an update via the software updater and IMMEDIATELY everything changed when I restarted as instructed by the updater. I've tried everything I know how ie unplugged everything etc (simple efforts) but nothing I tried got things back to the way it was be4 the update.

I am so hoping that there is something I am just missing in a setting somewhere that got changed without me knowing during that software update. Can anyone help me, please? I just want everything back to the way it was. Still checking thru some things in the meantime in case I find out how to fix this on my own BUT I'm not too confident that I can tbh (I've spent hrs on this already with distractions ofc lol)
PLEASE HELP AND TY IN ADVANCE FOR ANY AND ALL SUGGESTIONS (hopefully this request will help anyone else that has encountered this issue too in the process)