Emily Block's Story
Before I had my strokes, I was a very ambitious student and I had my heart set on being a doctor. I loved traveling, playing soccer, and volunteering. I was amazed at how much energy I had in college. I could get three hours of sleep, study for eight hours, take two midterms, run an international club, and do it all again the next day. Now things are very different or at least much more difficult.
I had two minor strokes that went undiagnosed when I was 17 and 18. I had the brainstem stroke that caused most of my current problems when I was 19, just a few weeks after I started my second year in college. It was amazing to me how I could go from being a competitive soccer player and student studying for midterms, to a very sick kid in a couple of seconds. Oddly, I was not frightened at all at first. Thinking the symptoms were a bad reaction to a new medication, I was laughing with my roommate as I kept falling into walls and stumbling. I felt sick, dizzy, and my heart was racing too, but for some reason it didn't seem like a big deal at the time. It wasn't until later, when I realized that I was stuck with these symptoms, that I started to worry. Over the next month I went to countless doctors appointments and had one very scary TIA. Finally I found out that I had a hole in my heart that was causing the strokes and I was able to get that fixed. Since then I haven't had another stroke, migraine, or even headache!
I have come a long way since my strokes. I can read and walk again, and I only have extremely mild difficulty talking sometimes. My equilibrium problems went away after a few weeks of vestibular physical therapy, so no more walking into walls for me! My main problems now arise from the fact that my autonomic nervous system does not work right. That causes me to have low blood pressure (feel fuzzy all the time and black our frequently), high heart rate (tired and out of breath all the time), difficulty sleeping, digestive problems, and temperature control issues. I seem to have good days and bad days. On good days I have been able to walk up to two miles before I have to rest! On bad days, just lifting my head up can make me too dizzy. I alternate between walking short distances, using my electronic wheelchair, and being pushed in a transport wheelchair to get around.
I am very pleased to say that I am back at school, and although it is a constant struggle, it is worth the effort. I love learning, being able to hang out with my college friends again, and being independent. I am even slowly working my way back into being involved with clubs and volunteer work. I especially enjoy volunteering for the American Heart and Stroke Association!
At this point, I don't know what the future holds for me. I don't know what career my health problems will allow me to do, but I hope its in the area of medicine. Every day I dream of getting better and traveling the world and playing soccer again. Someday that may happen, but if not, I know that I will always have my amazing friends and family to support me and lift my spirits no matter what I am able to do in life. Some days I get so frustrated, but most of the time I enjoy life in a way I never could have imagined before my strokes. There are still so many opportunities out there for me and the fact that everything is so challenging, makes life one big adventure!
Thanks to Emily 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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