Making a difference

When my mother was dying she told me that I could make a difference by speaking about my stroke.

The basis of my mother's belief was that I could do anything that I wanted to do and she knew that I made a presentation for aphasia group for Idaho State University.

I was one of eight participants at that program. When I did my presentation, many people said that I should present it to different audiences.

Mom knew about the ISU presentation and she encouraged me to do it again.

Mom died in September.

So in January at St. Al's stroke support group I did my presentation.

My PowerPoint had many slides including a slide about how lonely a stroke is. That seemed to resonate for many people.

Last week I did my presentation again in Caldwell, Idaho. I added one slide in my PowerPoint to detail about the impact for families.

For my wife, in an instant, she had to do everything. Take care of me, my son, our finances, arranging doctors and therapies, etc. I have a lot of friends, and my wife got so many texts and emails asking about me. Sometimes, she didn't know who people were!

She was a godsend and handled everything. I can't imagine life without her. I cannot imagine the emotions that she had.

Every stroke survivor and their families have their own stories. This is just my story.

So when people ask me to do my PowerPoint, I try to envision that it's just not my story. I am hoping to give a voice about strokes, possibilities, and limitations.

And limitations are real. Even now, 15 months later, When I get up I think I need to get ready for work. And then it hits me. I don't really have a job because I can't work at the capacity that I want.

It is incredibly frustrating to realize that I had a stroke. Really? I had a stroke? How could that be?

And then it hits me. Life is so different now. Just like other stroke survivors and their families.

I am so grateful that I can do my presentation to help other people and their families.

Mom was a visionary in that way I guess. She knew that I needed to have a purpose. Even the last week of her life, She said "do not give up, Mark."

I won't.

Comments

What is wrong with us! A lot: Aphasia, Apraxia, and Dysarthria

This morning, from 10:30 to Noon, at St. Lukes in Meridian Idaho, I participated in the “Aphasia, Apraxia, and Dysarthria Support Group” started a year ago through Idaho State University. We meet weekly. So, what is wrong with us? Aphasia is the name given to a collection of language disorders caused by damage to the brain. A requirement for a diagnosis of aphasia is that, prior to the illness or injury, the person's language skills were normal. The difficulties of people with aphasia can range from occasional trouble finding words to losing the ability to speak, read, or write, but does not affect intelligence. This also affects visual language such as sign language . The term "aphasia" implies a problem with one or more functions that are essential and specific to language function. It is not usually used when the language problem is a result of a more peripheral motor or sensory difficulty, such as paralysis affecting the speech muscles or a general hear...

Phantom Blindness and Taking a Break after Strokes

I met with my eye doctor last week about taking some time off from my vision therapy. I have been doing therapy since my stroke almost two and a half years ago. I am tired, and a need a break. My doctor said, “This is completely understandable. Take some time off.” At the appointment, my doctor tested my vision. Because of the strokes, my vision was affected, and I have a problem in my field of vision on the right side. I have a deficit with my right side peripheral vision. However, it is getting better. During the test, I told him that I “sense things on the right side of my peripheral vision.” It seems that I know that something is there, but I cannot really distinguish what it is. He told me that there is a body of thought describing phantom vision or phantom blindness. A Polish researcher, L. Bieganowski, described this phantom blindness this way: “The subject of the paper is the phenomenon of phantom vision. It occurs among the blind (or almost blind...

Anonymous Blogsphere and my strokes!

It is hard to believe that my strokes happened almost two and a half years ago. Sometimes, it is a distant reality. However, most of the time, this is a vivid and startling reality even now. When I wake up in the morning, I have to realize that this is NOT a dream. So, how am I doing? It depends. I continue to be grateful for my recovery. Every day, I know that it could have been so much worse. On the other hand, I still have invisible deficits. I participate in many stroke support groups because, until you have a stroke, no one can really understand the ramifications of strokes, recovery, and deficits. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute have insightful information about “Life After a Stroke.” Their website is http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/stroke/lifeafter.html The intro says “ The time it takes to recover from a stroke varies—it can take weeks, months, or even years. Some people recover fully, while others have long-term or lifelong...

Dunham Family and My Stroke Story!

Search This Blog