I have been around here for a while but have never told the story of my stroke. I am probably one of the longest post-stroke here. I am expert at doing things one-handed including driving, gardening, knitting, tapestry and putting up shelves. Anyway:
In May 1990 I was at a conference for work in Florida. After we finished the first day I went for a swim in the sea. After a couple of minutes I got caught in a riptide (undertow) and started to drown. This caused my blood pressure to rise which then burst an aneurysm and put me into a coma. Someone on the beach saw I was in trouble and pulled me out. An ambulance came and took me to hospital.
I was in a coma for 3 weeks, then after another 3 weeks it was decided it would be better (cheaper) to fly me home. I stayed in hospital in the UK until December. When I left I could walk a few steps but had no use of my left arm. By April I had recovered my driving licence, returned to my house living on my own and had returned to work part-time.
My big problem now is insomnia, post-stroke I average 2 hours a night. I still have no use of my left arm and have to use a wheelchair. but I’m still here, still fighting and enjoy my life. There’s grief for the life I lost and times when I get frustrated, but I came so close to losing everything that what I have now is a bonus. I think there was a point when I was sat at home and thought ‘This is how you are, get on with it’.
