Hi Everyone
Hello everyone, I feel like I know you all! My name is Cathy and my husband John had a hemorrhagic stroke on 04/30/2013. I have been reading Strokenetwork for a very long time. I even got in touch with Julie from St. Louis for a period of time. I am very familiar with Nancyl, Englishlady, Hostsue, Fred, Cagedbird and so on. I also participated in a live chat once, then I guess I got caught up in my life and decided to not actively participate. Guess I have changed my mind.
I suppose I will start with some details about John's stroke. John had spent a three day weekend back home in St. Louis with my son, John. My son, John, blogs on the St. Louis Cardinals farm team and the Cardinals invited the bloggers to a dinner and a game. They had a wonderful time and drove home to Georgia on Monday. He went to work on Tuesday morning as usual. About 9:45 a.m. I got a phone call from him tell me he could not move his left arm or leg. I told him to call 911, he said they had and told me what hospital he was being taken to. John is a auto technician by trade and was on a test drive when he realized he could not move his left arm to turn on the blinker. He drove two mile back to the shop. The last thing he remembers is being put in the ambulance. He was alert and aware of his surrounding once at the hospital, although does not remember. In fact, in the emergency room he was able to get his list of medications out of his wallet and give to those attending to him. (He had a massive heart attack in 2004). However, his eyes became fixed to the right and he started to vomit. They intabated him and took him to surgery. He had several setbacks in the hospital; he stayed two and a half weeks. He then spent six weeks in rehab.
He has been in some kind of therapy ever since. First, home healthcare, then a day program at Emory Hospital here in Georgia and we are currently in outpatient. Outpatient visist are about to run out. He remains paralyzed on his left side. He can walk very crudely with a hemiwalker and me holding on the his belt, but he has got nothing coming back in his shoulder. Although, he can move his left hand, but has a strong grasp reflex, whatever his left hand gets near, it graps and won't let go. We call it the venus fly trap! He has strruggled, like so many, with major depression. He now suffers with sleep apnea and depends on me for nearly everything. In any case, that's where we are.
John is 61 and I am (at least for a couple more weeks), 55. I am physically able to care for him. I feel very fortunate to be able to do it. I see so many people who cannot care for their loved ones. Although, I do wish sometimes we were back home. We moved to Georgia in 2009. The ecomony forced us to close a business we had owed for 32 years. We worked together everyday for 30 of those years. When we lost the business, we decided what else do have to lose and decided to move down here to be close to our son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. We have a large extended family back home that we miss very much.
What prompted me to write tonight was a look down memory lane. I was looking at some old pictures. We were so young, so thin and so different then. We have been married nearly 37 years. For me it was love at first sight. He says it took him about a month for the love-at-first-sight effect to kick in. I try not to be sad, but the truth is I am. At the same time, I always say that I am a very lucky woman for I am a woman who knows what it feels like to be turly loved. I am crying as write. I don't want to be sad.
In any case, this has gone on too long. I just wanted to get up the courage to find an outlet. I think it's necessary. I know that reading what everyone shares in their blogs and posts has been something I look forward to and has helped me get through this. Thank you all for your honesty and the compassion you show to those who need it. It makes me feel good to know that what I have always believed is true. People are good at heart!!!!
Thanks For Being There
Cathy
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