Kathy Morelli

I was 42, just married one year, and was in a hotel room alone waiting for a work conference. I got up at 7 am to shower, walked toward the bathroom and fell. I pulled myself up and fell 2 more times, I thought I'd broken my toe when I stubbed it and that's why I kept falling. My friends and co-workers came to the door, looked at me on the floor and said they were calling an ambulance, I insisted that nothing was wrong with me, "don't waste their time".

My friends insisted there was something wrong, the paramedics came and I emphatically apologized for wasting their time with a slurred voice. The paramedic said, "you have all the symptoms of someone whose had a stroke". "I do? I'm only 42!" "yes, but you do" and off we went to the hospital where they probed every inch of my body. "Yes, you've had a massive stroke!"

What does that mean to me? Paralyzed on my left side, but for how long? Could be forever. They stuck a tube down my throat to look at my heart, did an angiogram, said my heart was like that of a 15 year old likely due to the avid bicycling I'd done, so what happened? High blood pressure coupled with birth control pills threw a blood clot. I spent the next several months in and out of hospitals' rehab centres. I had wonderful care, the nurses were especially kind to me but I think that was partly because I could talk and I'm charming.

With the help of my new husband and my parents I walk with a leg brace and cane, still have no use of the left arm or hand, but am mobile, my speech was unaffected. As near as we can guess my stroke began during my sleep, but the doctors couldn't tell how long I was into it so couldn't give me the clot busting shot.

Determined Kathy

Thanks to Kathy for sending in her profile. Anyone else who would like to share their story can send it along with a photograph (if you're not shy!)

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