Lin Wisman
I stroked on March 6, 1997. It was totally out of blue. I had no warning. Suddenly I had a funny feeling in my head and became nauseated. It was in the evening and I was home alone. I phoned my sister, who was out, and left a message to please phone me. I think this was about 8 pm. She returned home at 9:30 and phoned. I did not answer.
We had talked earlier in the day and I had said that I had a big day at work the next day so she figured I had already gone to bed. Early the next morning she called again. I was always up early because I had to leave for work at 7am. I did not answer so she decided to come to my condo and see what the problem was. She found me unconscious on the bathroom floor.
She called 911. They came quickly and took me to the closest hospital. It was quickly confirmed that I had suffered a massive hemorrhage in the brainstem. The doctors could find no reason for the stroke. I did not have high blood pressure, a weak blood vessel, and so on.
After 4 months and 3 weeks in three different hospitals including 7 weeks at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago I left the hospital to begin rebuilding my life.
At the end of the first year my insurance company decided I was not going to progress further. I intuitively knew this was not true. So I continued to do exercises and sought out other therapies, both traditional and alternatives.
I would especially suggest looking into water aerobics, walking, healing music, acupuncture, and shiatsu.
Most important has been maintaining a positive attitude and the will to improve. I continue to research and try new methods to improve.
In 2000 I began volunteering for The Stroke Network. One of my most important tasks is editing the monthly newsletter, StrokeNet. In 2001 I was asked to be Director Information Resources.
Before my stroke I was involved in the fields of education, fund raising and computer support. For 10 years I lived in Belgium where I managed the company Service Ventures that provides computer support to companies.
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