30’s

What are your biggest challenges/residual effects? Due to pregnancy recovery has been up and down currently resting at home till our twins arrive September then will start rehab again. Left side weakness I can walk with leg brace and cane, arm has slight movement

How old were you when you had your stroke? 33

• Date of your stroke? 12/07/2016
• What general area do you live in?  Sherman oaks, California
• Type of Stroke? TIA 12/7/16 & Embolic stroke on 3/16/17
• Any known reasons for your stroke? Chiropractic manipulation- Vertebral artery dissection causing a TIA. Embolic stroke during surgery (angiogram/ cerebral embolization)
• What were your symptoms? I started having severe neck pain in the middle of the day Sunday that got progressively worse each day. On Wednesday I bent over & when I stood up I had double vision. My co-worker walked in & her face looked like it was melting. I lost my peripheral vision, was slurring words & although my brain was fully aware I couldn’t properly express myself. I also had electrical shocks down my left arm & hands.
• Were you administered TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator) within the first 3-5 hours of your stroke? Don’t know what that is.
• Where did you go for outpatient rehab? UCLA
• What are your biggest challenges/residual effects? Headaches, dizziness, loss of dexterity, unable to work right now (I’m a dental hygienist), anxiety that it will happen again.

Post recovery, what is something you have learned that might encourage others? 

Be your own advocate. When I was in the hospital the first time, with the symptoms, the doctors said I was having a migraine. It just didn’t feel right. I could’ve been released but I opted to stay overnight in order to get a MRI in the hospital. I’m so glad I did! Doctors said had I gone home, I probably would’ve had a massive stroke.

What is something quirky/fun about yourself?

I’m obsessed with my two dogs & I love pigs! My dream is to own an animal sanctuary with rescued pigs, cows, turkeys, goats, etc. I love crossfit & paddle boarding (although I can’t exercise just yet, I hope to get back at it soon)!

How did you hear about NOPW?

I was searching key words such as stroke, Tia, vertebral artery dissection.

Follow Meggan on instagram HERE!

What is your motivation song? 

How old were you when you had your stroke? 30

• Date of your stroke? 03/11/2017 
• What general area do you live in?  St. George, Utah
• Type of Stroke? Ischemic Stroke
• Any known reasons for your stroke? Caused by a condition called Primary Hyperaldosteronism or Conns Syndrome.
• What were your symptoms? We were getting ready for bed and mid sentence I couldn’t speak. My husband was confused until he noticed my arm wasn’t moving. He pinched it and it was completely numb. My left face was dropping and my blood pressure had spiked to 215/151.
• Were you administered TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator) within the first 3-5 hours of your stroke? No.
• Where did you go for inpatient rehab? My insurance denied in-patient rehab stating they didn’t see any reason.
• Where did you go for outpatient rehab? Dixie Regional Neuro Therapy
• What are your biggest challenges/residual effects?I’ve spent a month learning completely how to walk again. I’m left handed and the stroke happened on my left side, so I’ve had to learn to use my right side more.

Post recovery, what is something you have learned that might encourage others? 

Patience…. be so very patient! These things take time.

What is something quirky/fun about yourself?

I love jump-roping!

Any therapy tips you picked up during your time in therapy that might help others? 

The more you do at home the more progress you will make. Focus on making each movement count and that it’s correct. Fight like hell to make that connection.

How did you hear about NOPW?

From Instagram! Thank you for letting me know about this community!

Follow Lainee on instagram HERE!

How old were you when you had your stroke? 35

• Date of your stroke? 01/25/2012
• What general area do you live in? Orem, Utah
• Type of Stroke? Acute stroke near brain stem, cerebellum
• Any known reasons for your stroke? Chiropractic adjustment my neck caused a dissection in my right vertebral artery, blood clotted to heal the tear, that caused the stroke.
• What were your symptoms? Dizzy, lightheaded, losing voice, right side numbness, massive pain at the base of my head, vision impairment, right side large motor impairment, constant nystagmus with frequent severe episodes for about a year.
• Where did you go for in-patient rehab? Utah Valley Regional Medical Center
• Where did you go for out-patient rehab?  PT who treated me at UVRMC also did the outpatient visits. I’m not sure but I think that was through Utah Home Health

What are your biggest challenges/residual effects?

I made a remarkable full recovery. I learned to walk again. I started driving again 9 months post stroke. I still have challenges with my balance and mild vision issues, both are more severe when I am tired. I’ll stumble a little when I am tired, and if it is dark and I am lacking visual points of reference. At times, I have difficulty spitting out a thought and my memory is not as sharp. These are not things that disrupt me from living a normal life, fortunately. They are just subtle reminders of my experience, and help me remember to be grateful for my LIFE. Along with physical therapy, I used yoga to assist me in recovering. Yoga made the biggest difference in getting my balance to where it is today, and helping my vision through focus and concentration. I wrote my yoga healing story related to the stroke back in June 2012 (that quickly people could no longer tell I had physical deficiencies!). I will email you a copy of that story, as it is much more eloquent than this. 🙂

What advice would you give someone recovering from a stroke now?

1. Get moving. In any way you can, as often as possible. Yoga, physical therapy, walking, thumb wars, ANY movement. Moving the body helps to rebuild neurotransmittors in the brain, so we can relearn more quickly. 2. Eat healthy. You feel as good as you fuel. Eat lots of brain food – like walnuts, high quality fish oil, etc. 3. Positive affirmations. Staying positive is mandatory. Write affirmations, post vision boards, whatever makes you feel uplifted and keeps you working toward goals. Yes, have small incremental goals that you can spend time on daily. Have big dreams! Be full of life.

How old were you when you had your stroke? 31

• Date of your stroke? 4/13/2013
• What general area do you live in?  Stoutland, MO
• Type of Stroke? Cerebellar ischemic stroke
• Any known reasons for your stroke? PFO-hole in my heart.
• What were your symptoms? Sudden symptoms included vertigo, nausea, blurred vision, slurred speech, dizziness, and left-sided weakness. I was so sick and the world felt very dark and wouldn’t stop spinning. My husband drove me to an ER after my symptoms didn’t improve.
• Were you administered TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator) within the first 3-5 hours of your stroke? No
• Where did you go for in-patient rehab? Mercy Hospital-Springfield, MO
• Where did you go for outpatient rehab? On-Site Rehab-Osage Beach, MO

What are your biggest challenges/residual effects? Brain-fog, problems with balance, dizziness, loss of short-term memory, fatigue, mood swings, overstimulation, aphasia. I always say I’d never pass a drunk driving test!

What is something you have learned that might encourage others? Every day is a new day. Just because you felt down and defeated today, doesn’t mean you’ll feel that way tomorrow. Give each day a chance and never quit fighting!

How old were you when you had your stroke? 34

• Date of your stroke? 9/22/2013
• What general area do you live in? Olathe, KS
• Type of Stroke? Venous Thrombosis
• Any known reasons for your stroke? Numerous tests were performed in the months after my stroke, but no reason was ever found.
• What were your symptoms? I woke up in the middle of the night, and my right arm felt like it was asleep. I had been sleeping on my right side, so initially, I wasn’t alarmed until I tried standing up and realized I couldn’t move my right leg either. Several hours later, at the hospital, I developed a severe migraine that lasted all night.
• Were you administered TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator) within the first 3-5 hours of your stroke? No
• Where did you go for in-patient rehab?  At the time of my stroke, I lived in New York City and was in the acute physical therapy rehab at New York Presbyterian for two weeks until I was discharged and moved back to Kansas.
• Where did you go for out-patient rehab?  I did physical and occupational therapy at the KU Spine Center at KU Med for nine months.

W hat is something you have learned that might encourage others? The body is amazingly resilient with great muscle memory, and the speed and ability for it to recover often depends on your physical condition before the stroke, so take care of your body. Stay active! As ironic as it may seem, I was a healthy, active personal trainer when I had my stroke. Doctors told me a huge part of my ability to recover function of the right side of my body was because I was already in good physical condition. The other part was my attitude. Always stay positive and remember to look at how far you’ve come since your stroke. When I get discouraged, I look back to when I couldn’t even walk or move my fingers.

W hat are your biggest challenges/residual effects? Because I suffered hemi-paralysis on my right side and was right handed, writing is still very challenging and is shaky and looks like chicken scratch. My whole right side is weaker, and I still have gait issues if I walk more than twenty minutes.

W hat advice would you give someone recovering from a stroke now? Similar to what I said before, the body is amazingly resilient with great muscle memory, and the speed and ability for it to recover often depends on your physical condition before the stroke, so take care of your body. Stay active and positive. Attitude has a huge impact on your speed and ability to recover. Also, it’s extremely important to surround yourself with positive and supportive people. Make your recovery and yourself a priority!

How old were you when you had your stroke? 35

• Date of your stroke?  12/10/2014
• What general area do you live in?  Grew up in Paola, KS- but now live in the foothills of Denver
• Type of Stroke? Left side
• Were you administered TPA (Tissue Plasminogen Activator) within the first 3-5 hours of your stroke? No
• Where did you go for in-patient rehab?  No in-patient rehab, but was in the hospital for three weeks and over Christmas. I kept having TIAs, and they finally figured out that blood thinners don’t work well for me and switched me to anti-platelets and the TIAs stopped.
• Where did you go for outpatient rehab? Speech therapy at Littleton Hospital for several months – still going.

W hat are your biggest challenges/residual effects? I have ongoing expressive aphasia that gets pretty bad when I am tired. I have some typical “brain injury” symptoms like getting really overwhelmed in noisy or loud places, can’t deal with bright light, etc… I also now have frequent migraines and nerve pain and some of the meds they have given me to try to treat that has been pretty awful. I have apraxia in addition to aphasia, but therapy helps a lot. I was / am a pretty avid yogi, and have noticed that I have balance issues now when standing on my right side that I never had before, and also have some very mild ongoing Horner’s. Any type of overexertion brings on headaches, dizziness, and worsens my speech stuff, so I try to rest a LOT and go easy on myself. Overall I was pretty lucky, and my strokes were mild.

W hat was something that kept you going during your stay in the hospital that might encourage others? My family was amazing – as were the nurses. The nurses brought me in a Christmas tree and were just so kind and caring, I don’t know what I would have done without them. The doctors were pretty flummoxed that my dissection had worsened, so it was pretty tense at times as they argued a lot amongst themselves about whether to send me to surgery for a stent. But the nurses kept it lighthearted and made sure I stayed calm and that my family was assured it would be ok; they had a sense of humor about it all and it helped us relax.

What keeps you motivated now? I am just grateful to be here. I have to believe that a higher power was looking out for me – as my mom happened to be staying with me for the holidays and witnessed my first stroke. I wouldn’t have been able to call an ambulance or text anyone for help, so I am so grateful she was there! Also – the doctors told me that most of my recovery would be in the first 60 days. I am 90 days out and am still recovering and my therapists say I will continue to improve for many years- so I have hope!