"The Golden Hour." Can we talk about it for a minute?

[Teacher of the Year]

Last edited Tue Oct 15, 2024, 07:06 PM - Edit history (1)

On a beautiful August morning my husband was leaving for work. He's a 9-11 dispatcher. I was in bed reading DU. As he was about to walk out the door, our little kitten, (named Pepper Cat, tabby, cute, cute, cute) popped out of a hidey hole so he grabbed her and brought her upstairs to bed before he left.

"I was about to go but brought you a present."

The present probably saved my life.

I tried to say "I love you" and words did not come out. A stuttered out a garbled mish-mash did and we both realized something was wrong. He saw my face was drooping. I couldn't talk, my arm was numb. In an airy whisper, not speech, but "whisper talking"-that trick used in theater so a crowd makes noise, but it isn't actually speech. I whispered out "I'm having a stroke."

9-11 dispatchers have a stroke protocol and he began that as he dialed his own work place. When they answered he told them who he was and that the stroke was at the highest risk level. The ambulance was here in less than eight minutes. I was being wheeled in the hospital doors at 20. At 35 minutes the cat scan showed us what we already knew. Clot. Communication center of the brain. It was getting worse and worse.

Decision time with two choices. Leave it, and when it was all said and done we would pick up the pieces, if there were any. Or, a newer medicine, a clot-buster. It would either bust the clot up, stopping further damage or it would kill me.

I have spent the last ten years public speaking and I am a teacher. My last speech, $5000, was paid to my school and it covered our "food home on the weekend" for more than a school year. My other speeches have been equally weighty. On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, sandwiched in between Diane Ravitch and Reverend Barber, I spoke about LGBTQ youth and kids with special needs and those kids that get left behind. For ten years, ever since my Teacher of the Year award, I have used my voice to be the voice of my non-verbal students. It has been the voice of gay youth who are being alienated by hate-laws and denigrated by right-wing elected officials. My voice became someone else's voice in 2014 and that has not ever changed.

Mute me would be the waste of the opportunities I can get for those I am advocating for. I love my life. I love my pets. I love my husband but I long-ago realized that some things are bigger than our own lives and comforts. I took the clot buster.

As the hours progressed the clot was destroyed. Now we would find out the extent of the damage. But, in one of those miraculous moments where the professionals were at a loss for words, something became clear. The damage was disappearing. My voice started coming back, my face started moving, the numbness went away. 24 hours later, as I sat, bewildered by what had happened to me, the neurologist shook her head and told me the damages all seemed to be reversed. That's not how the medicine was supposed to work, but, apparently, that is how my brain decided it was going to be.

But the one thing every nurse, every doctor mentioned was "the golden hour." With a stroke, you are on a precipice, friends. At the end of the golden hour, you step off into the unknown. But during that golden hour the drs have the ability to drag you back from the edge. I woke up with numb fingers. I thought I slept wrong. I was wobbly when I went to the bathroom, I thought I was tired. I crawled back into bed and would have spent an hour reading, then made some coffee, then, maybe then, I would have tried to say something to the dog, or a cat and would have then realized I could no longer speak. I would have missed my golden hour.

You cannot miss your golden hour. You must listen to your body and you must act on what it is telling you.

Am I free and clear? No. Residuals from the stroke are ongoing and strange. For several days I had neon colored disco lights flashing across my vision so bad I could not drive or hardly read. For the past week I have phantom smells. Not toast or flowers or my mom's hand lotion but the exact smell of my dad's John Deere power mower exhaust circa 1980-except we are in a locked garage and it is on full throttle. For those of you who remember the smell of leaded gas burning hot, you know the smell I mean. The front half of my brain says, "It's all OK." The lizard brain is running around screaming I am being poisoned and must get out now. Waking up at 2 am when lizard brain just dumped a days worth of adrenalin in your system is not a nice wake up call.

I returned to my classroom last week, only to have it last a day, then get cut to half day, and, as of yet, I have not been able to return. Lizard brain might need a little more time to get used to things. These things are passing, I hope. Some are amusing-like, attempting to put the clutch in and shift even though I have not driven a manual transmission for over a decade. I spent five minutes looking for a can opener, only to realize I was looking for my parent's can opener that I grew up with. When that clicked, it also clicked that the cat food brand I use has a pull top. It is what it is.

I'm rolling with it. I will be voting with it. And I am going to master it.

But in the mean time, I wanted to talk to you about that golden hour. The numbness I ignored was the clock starting. The wobbly walking was the ten-minute warning. The kitten was fate and my husband (and all 9-11 dispatchers) was the hero.

Friends, I ask you remember my golden hour. I also recommend kittens.

(EDITED TO ADD: This post is sitting in the top spot on DU. I have been so honored and will admit to getting the feelings while reading all of your loving comments. Thank you so much. I know I don't write the typical DU posts, and they are rarely short and sometimes not so easy to read. I wanted to write something that was memorable. Something that would pop up in your head if your body was ever sending a message. You made it clear I achieved that, but what I didn't expect was the outpouring of such caring words. Thank you. I've been trying to say thank you individually, and I will, but it will take me a bit. Have a lovely day, you all certainly made sure I would. Cheers)

[gay texan]

1. Holy shit!!!

I hope you are ok????

[Teacher of the Year]

2. I could not hope for better Tex.

It is still scary but I can talk, I can walk, I did a panel at one of the State University's and was able to keep the brain doing what I needed it to do. I have to search for words often, my spelling is now atrocious as my brain needs to look up things to make sure I am right. Those things we do on auto pilot are the issue. My auto pilot is off. If I'm opening a door, my brain is going through the steps of how a door knob works. It does it a couple of times for new things I haven't done since the stroke, words I haven't used since the stroke. Once things are double checked, I move on to double check the next thing.

For a quick talker, who weaves stories to make a bigger picture, getting slowed down to double check if it is "their" or "there" or an I before an e is kind of.... startling. But I don't think anyone notices but me.

[Fla Dem]

3. A truly inspirational and informational story.

So glad you got the immediate help that allowed you to regain almost all your functionality. Thank God for your little kitten. Thankfully your husband was a 911 dispatcher and knew exactly what to do.
So many things went right for you after the stroke.
I’m thankful for you, your husband and your precious pets.
May you continue on the road to full recovery!

[Teacher of the Year]

9. Quick acting emergency care across the board (and kittens) saved me.

But something else becomes frighteningly clear. I can talk because I live in a city filled with hospitals.

For over a decade we have heard how the health clinics in rural America are shutting up shop. I've been all over my state speaking at school districts and supporting programs. Had this happened on one of those trips to the outskirts of my state...

And then you think...what happens to our country neighbors? Are all these advances just off the table for them if a helicopter can't get them there?

Then I tell myself to stop thinking because I'm supposed to be dull as a flapjack right now and the brain needs to think about kittens and fluffy things. I'm glad to be here. I'm glad I get to vote. I'm in a state where my vote doesn't matter so much, but I am incredibly eager to vote just in case. We do mail in so any day now...any day now.

When one's foot steps into the grave for a moment, it leaves one wanting to dot all the I's and cross all the crosses. :0)

[Fla Dem]

14. Well your writing certainly displays a clear thinking mind. Keep up the good progress!

[Teacher of the Year]

20. When I did the spell check at the end of writing this I had to call my husband over.

O misspells. A week ago there would have been dozens.

Last night I had a five minute debate in my head: is it "zeros" or "zeroes", and I got stubborn and wouldn't look it up. I told myself I would figure it out because deep down, I know I know the rules....so I sat and I stared and I finally gave up and pulled up dictionary.com. LOL...it is both. And I just started laughing because I was so sure I was having another glitch.

[pandr32]

72. You can spell it either way in Canada.

You are international now!
My best to you for a continued recovery.

[Solly Mack]

4. I'm glad you're OK.

Thank you for your post.

[Teacher of the Year]

21. Thank you Solly.

I am so glad to be here.

[Nevilledog]

5. Your body is telling you that it's going to take a little bit of time to go full-speed.

Thank you for the inspiring story, and glad you're here to tell it.

[Teacher of the Year]

22. Hi Nevilledog!

Yeah. I had six weeks of recoup, here at home, hardly left, got really routine bound. SO, it seemed like it was going incredible with no glitches. Then, I got out of the routine and....um. Yeah. Glitches. So far, just little ones.

[Dem2theMax]

6. Thank you for taking the time to share this with us.

I'm so sorry you've had to go through this, and so grateful your husband was there at just the right time. Your description of what happened to you can help all of us to be aware of the signs of a stroke.

I had a seizure last year, related to coming off of medication I had been on for many years. And some of my symptoms are like yours. Especially when it comes to language. Whether it's speaking or trying to write, it doesn't always come easily.

I hope for you what has happened for me. It's been just about a year since the seizure. And things are much better. I notice the symptoms coming back when I am more tired. So I have learned that proper rest is the number one 'medicine' for me.

Wishing you all the best in your continued recovery.

[Teacher of the Year]

24. Yes on the tired.

I am so glad you are doing well. I do know, as I get more tired, I get slower and slower and my reaction is not what it should be. I had one day back at school, I was walking one kid to gym and he stepped away and pulled the fire alarm and I just couldn't react quick enough. The whole school got evacuated and I had to fess up why it happened.

[Dem2theMax]

46. It's so frustrating, isn't it?

We are so used to being one way, relying on our bodies and our minds. And then something happens and we are left learning how to cope with a different body and a different mind.

You are still in the work world, where I am retired. So I have the luxury of doing nothing when my brain is too tired to focus. Or my body is too tired to do what I want to do for the day.

I'm just about a year out from my 'event.' You are a few short months from yours. I'd say, from all you wrote, you're doing incredibly well.

I'm not good with patience. The seizure was my life lesson on patience. I thought I was old enough to not need any more big life lessons. Lol? But I have learned ~ take my time, listen to my body, and do what it tells me to do. I would lay odds you are doing the same. It's amazing how the body and the mind can heal themselves if we just give them what they need.

[AltairIV]

7. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for sharing this. So many members here at DU take the time and share what are such personal moments from their lives, it truly is amazing the spirit and sense of community that these threads spawn. Good thoughts and prayers, oh and I completely agree with your sentiments on kittens and Cats. Stay strong.

[Teacher of the Year]

25. Pepper looks a lot like your avatar.

Can't go wrong with a tabby cat!!

[MLAA]

8. What a relief! What a kitten, what a husband and what a determined extraordinary teacher of the year that beat the odds

to comeback so far so quickly and more recovery to come!

[Teacher of the Year]

43. I like that "more recovery to come" part a lot!

[yonder]

10. The simplest gestures can have unknown but tremendous consequences.

I have a similar story about not leaving for work that had a profound positive effect on my own family.

Your husband's gentle gift made a huge difference in your lives. Thank you for sharing.

[Tanuki]

11. I can see why you were voted "Teacher of the Year"!

You educated each of us with this spellbinding and informative account of your crisis and recovery. Thank God (and your husband and all the rescue team medical personnel) that an intervention was possible. I'm sure that someone who reads this (or multiple someones) will get a second chance because you took the time to tell your story and to teach us about the Golden Hour. Best wishes for continued recovery!

[Teacher of the Year]

28. Thank you.

I really did try to paint a picture-one that would come up in your mind if those numb fingers or phantom smells every show up in your life. If one student learns the lesson, sometimes, it is all worth it. LOL...or I have a low bar, but, yes. Thank you for seeing what I was trying to do.

[mucholderthandirt]

68. I have phantom smells prior to and during a migraine. I've spent countless hours looking for what's burning.

I either smell something burning, or cigarette smoke strong enough to gag me. No one's ever smoked in this house (youngest used to vape, that never bothered me). It's awful, going around and around the house, checking in closets and behind furniture, looking for something on fire. And then having to go around outside. Man, the lizard brain really gets going when it thinks I'm going to burn to death!

Looking back months later, early last year I realized I may have had a small stroke. I felt like I'd gotten the flu or something, cold, tired, shaky, sleepy. No other symptoms, until later I realized my right arm didn't work right. This was later, too late to get medical care. My brain didn't connect it in time. Then I got Covid, and it's been hell inside my head. I can't type half the time, the other half I'm fixing typos every other word. I forget words, can't remember stuff, I'm tired, distractible.

It's a mess, and I know now how this stuff works and won't let it pass again. Well, I hope. The way I can't focus well means I might miss it again. Sigh. Life sucks sometimes.

[dlk]

12. So happy it turned out as well as it did

Sending good wishes your way for continued recovery and thank you for sharing this valuable medical information.

[brer cat]

13. I'm glad you were treated within the "Golden Hour."

Your post may save another life. Thanks for sharing.

[Teacher of the Year]

48. That's why I wrote it Brer cat. :0)

I knew all these things and still didn't give it much thought. Sometimes just hearing the words isn't enough, you need a relatable story, you know?

[Lulu KC]

15. Wow!

Great story and so glad you made it through.

[a kennedy]

16. OMGAWD......Teacher of the year.......

Damn, damn, damn, Thank you, will always try to remember the signs. Hope you’ll be back to what is ever possible. 🙏🏻 🙏🏻 🙏🏻

[joanbarnes]

17. Once again you are Teacher of the Year

As we all learned much from your experience. Thank you.

[calimary]

18. WOW! A good lesson to take to heart.

Thanks so much, Teacher! You certainly are one HERE!

Thanks for your post AND all the clarity and wisdom in it.

“The Golden Hour”. You really are a good teacher. You conducted a strong, memorable lesson for us all.

Glad you’re still here, to add further insights when it’s easy and convenient for you. YOUR health and healing both remain Top Priority, though.

[Teacher of the Year]

50. Thank you Calimary!

A decade ago...when I wrote under my old name, Don Redwood, I fessed up something to you. LOL...when I read your name I always thought it was a play on squid...for years, and then one day it clicked. Mary might just be from California and not a Mary who likes to eat squid. Don't know If you remember that. Even with that knowledge, I still read squid before I see California.

[calimary]

57. AHA! Well very nice to get back in touch, Teach!

I remember that!

I didn’t get the squid reference until you mentioned it back then. Cuz it’s not one of my favorite treats, but I can certainly see how it fits.

And I’m amazed at how long ago that was! Glad we’re still at it. I don’t know how I stayed sane, politically, before I stumbled onto this place.

[Teacher of the Year]

76. I went quiet for almost a decade!

I was getting a lot of threats and stuff so I kind of sat back and just read...but I was here there whole time. That kept me sane, but man it was hard to hold my tongue sometimes! I was quiet through a whole election!

[cate94]

19. OMG

Lucky. So many pieces fell in to place to save your life. You are a miracle! I’m glad you are still here!

[progressoid]

23. Cats: The other first responders!

[Teacher of the Year]

29. We have three, and a dog.

And in the morning my husband has been going to work and they all dog-pile me. I know they know I have been under the weather, and they have every intention of keeping me as warm as possible until I'm better. They don't usually sit on me at all, so it is kind of amazing.

[progressoid]

32. They know.

We no longer have pets but one of our cats always knew to comfort my wife when she wasn't well.

Take care and get better!

[mcar]

26. Your writing ability is unimpaired

Thank you for sharing your story. It is so important.

I wish you continued healing.

[Teacher of the Year]

74. For the first weeks I could not spell-I had to look up everything.

It was--interesting--I basically had to relearn the "I before e" rules and stuff like that. And, sometimes, I will stare at something but can't, for the life of me, think of the darned name of said item. But I find most of that stuff slightly amusing, most of it works out after I think about it for a little bit. The smells are terrible but they only hit if I am sitting or lying. If I get up, I can walk them off. But I'd be up walking 23.5 hours a day.

Today though, I've had more smell-free time than the past days. I'm hoping it will fade away like the neon flashing floaters I had for a few days. (Those were pretty, but I couldn't drive or read with them!)

Thank you for the kind words. I plan on being around for a while--I'm ornery that way.

[mcar]

75. What an odd symptom - the smell thing

I think that would drive me crazy. The brain is an amazing organ, isn't it?

[Jack Valentino]

27. Thank you for this incredible story!

I pray for your complete recovery!

And bless the kittens!


Life can turn on a dime. I am glad you are still with us!

[Teacher of the Year]

52. As far as turning on a dime goes

I think I'd say I'm a millionaire for all the dimes I've turned on.

I summed it up this way to my cousin: "I kind of felt like I was a cat with nine lives, but this makes a lot more than nine. I must be two cats."

[True Dough]

30. Riveting! Well written, TotY!

Glad you're all the way back! Any history of strokes in your ancestry that you're aware of?

[onecaliberal]

31. The hospital gave my husband a ct scan, said it wasn't a stroke. Even though a perfectly healthy human couldn't walk.

Sent us home. If I had listened to that doctor, he’d have gone to bed and stopped breathing and passed away.
I called 9-11 a second time, went to another hospital. Was diagnosed with a stroke. 22 days in the hospital, 5 months in rehab.

[Teacher of the Year]

55. Oh my gosh!

How are they doing? I hope the recovery has been as good as it could possibly get.

I'm also sorry you had to deal with that. I watched my husbands face as the dr spelled out how serious it all was. God, that look on his face will remain one of the low points of this entire experience. I hope you are doing well too.

[onecaliberal]

64. He is permanently disabled. Has never worked again.

We take very good care of him. He's as good as he can be 8 years on. I’m working ten hour days and trying to hang on. Our lives have never been the same.

[awesomerwb1]

33. Beautifully written and very informational

I'm glad you're well and on your way to a full recovery.

Thank you for sharing.

[Hekate]

34. Thanks for the Public Service Announcement, and all the best to you in your full recovery

[Teacher of the Year]

56. Hi Hekate. I guess, TBH, most teachers are part walking service announcement!

[aggiesal]

35. I'm glad you're doing better. I have a story for you ...

A co-worker called to collaborate with me often. This particular day, he called around around 8:30 am., when he started slurring.
He said he doesn't feel right.
I asked if either side of his body feels numb, and he said yes.
I told him he's having a stroke and to call 9-1-1.
He wanted to lay down and rest. I told him to CALL 9-1-1!!!
We hung up. I called my supervisor, who's wife is an RN.
He told me to immediately call 9-1-1, because if he's not diagnosed and treated within 45 minutes, he could have permanent brain damage. He also said if he lied down and fell asleep, he might not wake up again.

So my co-worker called me back and said he called his mom and that she would be right over.
I asked how long is she going to take to get to his house, and he said she had to jump in the shower.
At this point I'm yelling at him, CALL 9-1-1.
He finally called 9-1-1 and they arrived before his mom arrived.

I calculated that it probably took about 35 minutes after he began to slur until the EMT's showed up.
He has short term memory loss, but not too bad. If you talked to him, you probably wouldn't know that he's had stroke.
He's very functional and just retired about 1 month ago.

My supervisor told me that I probably saved his life. I'd like to think I did, but I don't know what to say or how to handle that.
I was just trying to get my friend to listen, because this was pretty serious.

[Teacher of the Year]

77. You did save his life.

I found myself not wanting to say "He saved my life" because it felt like I said I was going to die, and I had no intention of doing that at this time... and then I realized how to say it and I told him, "You saved the life I have." I would have survived, I think, but I would never have returned to the life I love so much...I would have returned to something else: disability retirement, a muted voice, the end of the work I have been doing. So many possibilities that were just not acceptable to me.

So, you saved the life he had, and you probably saved his life completely. Well done. I hope other DUers see this, and that your story sticks in the back of their brain along with mine.

[slightlv]

36. Thank you for your important post.

Scary and I'm so glad you've come back as far as you have.

It's scary for me because I'm up to head to the bathroom several times a night. When I get out of bed I'm always half asleep and wobbly enough to make sure to put my hand on the wall to steady me. With Raynauds numb fingers and tongue is a normal condition. I don't know that I would snap to that golden hour. That's scary for me to think about.

I do have 3 cats I call my nurse maids and one of them always kisses my cheeks just b4 I wake up fully from nightmares. Maybe sweeping her up from the middle of the street as a feral kitten when we moved is a blessing waiting to happen

Good health and healing energies to you... you're a very exquisite person. Thank you

[peggysue2]

37. Inspiring and important story, a cautionary tale to others: listen to your body's cues

I suspect a lot of us would ignore or make excuses for those important cues: no big deal, just need a little more sleep, yada, yada. Human nature, I guess. We never want to believe something really dreadful is happening. How lucky for you that the series of events occurred the way they did and you received timely medical intervention.

As for the clot buster? My father-in-law had a stroke and received the same medication. He survived the stroke and ended up with few if any stroke side-effects. My youngest son was amazed. My husband and I were living nearly 700 miles away . My son called from the hospital and was crying because he thought it was over for Pop. But within 30 minutes of the meds, my father-in-law was back to himself, struggling to sit up and asking everyone: What happened??

Incredible!

Best of wishes for a full recovery. Thanks, too, for the community heads up on the Golden Hour.

[question everything]

38. What an inspiring and courageous story. Glad you are well.

[flamingdem]

39. Beautifully written

I was there with you at every turn.

So happy for you that you are recovering quickly.

[AmBlue]

40. And I know why you are Teacher of the Year

And I will certainly remember the Golden Hour, especially after your eloquently written and terrifyingly personal story. Thank you so much for sharing it! I hope your full and complete recovery is in the very near future. Sounds like that new med was a miracle-worker for you.

[highplainsdem]

41. Wow. Thank God the stroke was caught and successfully treated in time. I hope you'll be

completely recovered soon.

[Liberal In Texas]

42. Wow. What a cautionary tale.

I wish you the best in your recovery. Be patient. You'll get your life back. Maybe not exactly the way it was, but it will still be good.

[LoisB]

44. Very informative. Thank you and thank Pepper Cat.

[Figarosmom]

45. Thank you. Nt

[CaptainTruth]

47. OMG... I wish you the best!!!

"I returned to my classroom last week, only to have it last a day, then get cut to half day"

That brings back memories. I never had a stroke but I did have a serious concussion. Impact to my left frontal lobe with brain swelling. It took me weeks to remember the names of common objects. I had serious aphasia. In the end I lost 2+ weeks of memories, just a complete blank.

As I recovered I returned to work about a dozen times (I had a management position so no heavy lifting) & every time I could only work 2-3-4 days before I had to take more time off. I understand. It took me about 2 years to fully "recover."

I wish you all the best!!!

[Kali]

49. wow!

[nolabear]

51. What a remarkable story. And you tell it well.

I’ve got a family full of medical folk and advocates for nonverbal kids so I’m particularly touched. And you’re a wonderful storyteller. While you’ve got time I hope you find a way to write or tell your story in a bigger way. You certainly can.

Btw my sister used to be a 911 operator too. We’ve got some. crossovers, eh?

The brain is a miracle. Yours has some amazing resilience and a bit of golden luck.

[IcyPeas]

53. Glad I looked at this post.

Wow! That was some good timing. You wonder how much of the quick improvement was the medication or just your body repairing itself. And what a choice you had to make quickly to take it or not... yikes!

And thank you Husband and Pepper kitten.

Did Pepper get an extra treat?

[Teacher of the Year]

54. We got her from the Humane Society

This little tiny thing who just stood out to me. First she had little spots and little stripes, and I fell in love with them, and then her little white feet. She got really sick the next day and we almost lost her. I spent five days locked in the bedroom with her so she wouldn't get the other cats sick. No avail. We almost lost both of our other cats. four or five emergency room visits each-over $7000.

BUT...now every night since those first nights, Pepper crawls under the covers, curls up in my arm pit, biscuits me for twenty minutes while she chews on and, occasionally rips out a chest or armpit hair (much to my shock and horror). And I let her do it because she is the cutest thing in the world and I can't believe how lucky I am that every night I fall asleep to the sounds of her little chirpy purrs that come after the biscuiting and the hair nibbling.

My mom named her Pepper after we snuck her in the care home so my mom could meet her. She's just a special little thing. :0)

[GeoWilliam750]

58. You sound absolutely wonderdful!

I will continue to hope that you continue to improve!

[electric_blue68]

59. What an amazing story! So glad to hear how much you've recovred!...

So many pieces falling into almost perfect alignment for you- in time for help! This as a "I lived it" story w pertinent details is a way to stick in our memories.

I wish you many years of a good life ahead!

I ended up w embolisms (clots in lungs, terrible pain) from probably a leg clot while recovering from a tri fractured ankle. I was in a rehab place.

Eventually there I was in the ICU and was told I could wait (I think) to see if they'd dissolve, but might leave damage, or take the clot buster which had a small chance of causing bleeding.
My dad had had a brain bleed, and ended w serious sshort term memory loss, then dementia over time ?2 years. There's something about my mom (while I was trying to decide) which felt like the other side of the coin in a not good way, but I can't remember right now.

So I felt a bit like between a rock and hard place. I took it, and within 10 mins the nurses could see the improvement on various monitors. This was?14 years ago.
No lingering effects!

A different thing about my mom was she had had 2 mini strokes way earlier w no lasting effects. Thank goodness. So I knew some of the symptoms as i asked her what was happening.

Take care!
And a scratch behind the ear for Pepoer Cat.

[AKwannabe]

60. Back from the brink!

Whew. That seemed close!

Right on
Right on!

Glad to have ya back!

[FirefighterJo]

61. I would like to make a small addition...

... to this inspirational story. As a medic, we are trained to treat the golden hour as the prime directive. Whether it is a stroke, (food) poisoning, a car accident, heart troubles ... it is imperative to get the patient within the hour into the ER. It becomes even more crucial if the complaints become clear in a sudden manner. Always listen to your body. When in doubt, call! Better get the medics riding for a minor or non issue then to let them hit the road too late or not at all.

[Teacher of the Year]

80. Firefighter Jo, thank you for the important addition.

I'll fess up... I'm that guy that had the chest pains for a week--but thought I pulled a muscle. (mind you, at the time I was running a "medically fragile" classroom with not one, but TWO full time nurses. I'd been building a rock wall with the biggest rocks I could pick up and thought I'd pulled a muscle. They had checked me out-bp good, heart monitor, pulled muscle made sense and, it came and went and was on the right side, way over under my collar bone. Oops

Finally, on Friday, the last day of school, I threw in the towel and was driving to the ER when I got walloped, on the freeway, alone, doing 70, with a widow maker. I coasted into the ER, on my extra-golden minute, I guess.

That was in 2012. I'm still glad to be here.

[Evolve Dammit]

62. Very informative post. Thank you and hope you'll be ok going forward.

[happy feet]

63. Thank you so much for

Sharing this life saving information. I wish you a full recovery.

[Prairie_Seagull]

65. Teacher of the year, have they diagnosed what caused your stoke?

You were sleeping so probably not BP right? Do they have you on blood thinners now?

I hope my 2 teaching daughters will be as involved as you are.

Welcome and hope we hear more from you. Seems you have more to add to DU



edit, hope I won't get docked for my missing period above.

[Teacher of the Year]

81. FIrst, I never judge anyone for spelling, grammar and punctuation...except...

when I get a nasty message from some right winger. Those I correct and return with no comment.

The culprit, they think, was a 73% blocked carotid artery. The guess was a chunk had broken off. Two weeks later I had a new surgery called a T-Car: I will admit ignorance and never read the full procedure. It was a lot and I figured it was going to happen anyway--so I stopped reading part way through. LOL. Mike read all of it (probably ten times, and then he probably got to googling). Basically they cut me open on my neck, went digging around inside and put in a stent-but while they did that, they had to reverse the flow of blood into my brain, run it through a strainer and then they would.... and that's where I stopped reading because I could not get the picture of my mother straining raspberry jelly through cheesecloth to get out the seeds.

So, they strained me like a raspberry, patched it all, stitched me on the inside and glued me on the outside, and then all kind of stood back in shock as I did laps around the nurses station out of boredom while they kept me in ICU for-I don't know, five days? Something like that.

I will say that I was their favorite patient. However, there is a caveat. The guy to my north screamed he was dying for the four days and the guy on the left kept throwing full urinals and soda at the nursing staff. But, regardless, I was their favorite.

[Bluethroughu]

66. Thank you for sharing/teaching!

I'm glad to hear you are working through the hiccups, but impressed by your husband's quick thinking! He is your knight in shinning armour carrying a cat!

[lonely bird]

67. Wow!

First, I am glad to hear that you are continuing with your remarkable recovery.

Second, I googled clotbuster drugs since they are of interest to me from my own health experience. I have two gene mutations which impact the clotting cascade. I didn’t know about the second mutation until I was hospitalized with a DVT last Christmas. I had been on warfarin for 20 years until I went into the hospital in 2015 for a bowel obstruction. My INR was 9.1. So I was switched to Xarelto. Everything was fine until last Christmas. While I was in the hospital they did genetic testing and discovered the second mutation. So I was switched to Eliquis. I was told by the hematologist that there is a slightly increased risk of having a breakthrough clot because of the second mutation even while on Eliquis.

[Clouds Passing]

69. You are so lucky! And aware! Heal well!

I had a mini stroke, I will absolutely heed your advice!

Strokes appear to be the new epidemic. I know many people who have had them in the past few years.

[TygrBright]

70. Thank you SO much for sharing this. Glad you're still with us! n/t

[Wild blueberry]

71. Thank you

Your story is a gift to us. Thank you.

I had a TIA two years ago, with no repercussions medically. Like a fool, I did not go to hospital for a couple days. When I realized how serious it could be, it scared me to bits. Now I KNOW to call 911 and get in immediately.

You're right about people in rural areas, which I am. All the more reason to act immediately.

All the best in your continuing recovery.

[sdfernando]

73. OMG!! I'm so glad you are still with us!

..and you are truly living your handle "Teacher of the Year". Taking this experience, tragedy avoided, and using it to educate others! I can see why you were named Teacher of the Year! So thankful for your husband and the kitten!...and of course for you being with us.

Hoping for a full and complete recovery.

[TommyT139]

78. Your work isn't done :)

Thank God for kittens...and your husband's sweet gesture to deliver one to you before leaving.

Your story needs to be heard far and wide, since it seems people are having strokes at younger ages. Best wishes for continued healing!

[Teacher of the Year]

84. I will tell you a story Tommy...

I had a widow maker heart attack in 2012. Alone. Driving myself to the hospital because I thought I had a pulled muscle.

I won't tell the whole story, but when I woke up, the heart surgeon was standing at the end of his bed, scratching his head and reading my chart with a puzzled look.

He saw that I was awake and said this, "Mr B___. I have never said this before, but you just had a widow maker heart attack...(dramatic pause) and it did no damage to your heart....(more dramatic of a pause) and I can't explain that."

My mom pops up and says, "Oh, I can! God doesn't want this one."

She is gone now, but, when the stroke damage began reversing, I swear I heard her whisper it in my ear. (I'm kidding, but I know she's up in heaven, looking down, really sorry she didn't get a chance to say it again and shock another doctor.

[HeartsCanHope]

79. I'm so glad you got that golden hour!

Thanks also to all your heroes that saved you. Please be patient with yourself as you recover, it just takes time. Stay well, my friend, will be thinking of you and your family!

[EarthFirst]

82. Thank you for this...

My father his a golden hour two weeks ago.

A similar fate was of fortune to my father as my mother has spent the past 30 years in healthcare in the hospice services field as a registered nurse. She knew the symptoms; and she knew that time was of the essence.

In a miraculous scenario my father was in a neuro icu in under an hour with a Subarachnoid hemorrhage that threatened to stroke; or at best impair motor and neurological functions going forward; three individuals to the neuro icu with identical SAH’s perished the previous week.

While he is not entirely cleared of further complications from his SHA; his neuro team gave him far better odds having had the foresight to seek medical treatment sooner rather than later…

Thanks for sharing your experience; and imploring us to pay particular attention to our own golden hour…

[Demovictory9]

83. Wow..you have been on a journey thses last 2 months

I'm glad you made it thru