Survival Journeys

"One stroke, two strokes, three strokes; I refuse to go out." A survivor's poem.

Amy Edmunds shares the story of having a stroke at the age of 45 and how it inspired her to start an organization focused on the needs of stroke survivors under the age of 65.

Before Paul George was a two-time NBA All-Star, before he was a player on the Indiana Pacers, before he was the tenth player picked in the NBA draft or led his high school basketball team to a league championship, he was the 6-year-old son of a stroke survivor. His mother Paulette’s stroke at age 37 would change his life forever.

On May 12, 2014 — Mother’s Day — Jenna Tischer of Warrensburg, Missouri, was savoring her last week of maternity leave following the birth of her second child. That night she had a massive stroke.

Like the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz, I got a new heart, one filled with compassion for those facing similar struggles.

Many of our readers think the only reason we publish Stroke Connection is so they can read John Kawie’s column, "Life at the Curb." This issue marks 10 years that John has succeeded at what seems impossible — making stroke funny.

She woke up in the hospital, terribly confused and unable to speak. She didn’t know that she had had a stroke and with it, aphasia.

I’ve learned that every person’s journey is different. When I realized that my recovery was not going to happen overnight, I cried myself to sleep for a month. After that, I was determined to make a "new normal."

One year after a near-death experience and three strokes, this professor of acting rolled on stage to do a one-man show about his experience.

As I approach the eighth anniversary of being in private practice, I think about how it all came about and how if I hadn’t had a massive hemorrhagic stroke, I might not have been so bold as to open my own business.