Long story short, it was April 25, about 6 in the morning, I got out of the shower and had a stroke. My poor husband drove me across the street to the hospital (the joys of life in a small town) and I got out and fell down.
The rest I don’t remember. But apparently, I was flown in a helicopter to Mayo in Rochester, I’m from Austin, MN, and got there about 7 a.m. Lots of tests, and I “slept through” my birthday. I “woke up” on May 28. Apparently I was really talkative when I was out and swore a lot.
The doctor said it was an AVM burst and I had a lot of therapy. I’m still in therapy. Among other things, I can’t walk without a walker and another person, I don’t talk good, I have double vision, I can’t go to the bathroom alone, I can’t write good, and I can’t type good. I’m 24, this Sucks.
stick with the therapy and it will slowly get better. you are young and you will bounce back quicker than i have. stay positive and keep fighting!
It took me 3 months to learn to walk without help and I just walked 5 miles last month at my 1 year since my rupture. Patience is hard but the brain takes its time with this type of trauma.
So sorry to hear that this has happened to you, but I am SO glad that you managed to post here. Keep up the good work, and keep us posted on what’s happened. You are in our thoughts!
Seenie
You’re right. AVM’s suck big time! My symptoms were similar to yours when my AVM ruptured 11/14. In time, all my deficiencies came back at least 90%. The remaining 10% may never come back and I’m good with that. During my journey, I picked up some wonderful cuss phrases! The more I healed, the less I used those delightful phrases. Hang in there. It’s not going to be easy, but recovery and/or improvement can be achieved. Prayer & Patience is my recommendation. Wishing you all the best.
Baby steps!! Take it easy bud, my surgery was also at 24, I’m 52 !! You can do this!! Give your self time to heal, god bless , I feel for you, we are all here for each other,NEVER SURRENDER!!
That was your BIRTHDAY?!?! I’m really sorry. :(. But it’s really funny how you said you were really talkative and swore a lot. I was totally just jibber jabbering away when I just began to wake up. If you bled on April 25 you’re still relatively near to your rupture date. Yeah, it totally sucks, but hang in there. I used to dream of being able to use the bathroom alone, and being able to walk from one room to another. One day, after a ton of therapy and frustration, it became reality. Go at your own pace, take your time. Tell your husband you need him to take you on a special date - pick a reason to celebrate, even if it’s stupid. As rough as Recovery can be, it’s not ALL drudgery. Thank God, bc if it were, I wouldn’t have lasted this long, and it appears I’m here for the long haul.
Jenae, Well, welcome to a great, supportive club with people in similar conditions to you, and thanks for sharing your story so far. As the guys say, this is a long game: you’ve got plenty of time to get better yet, so chin up.
I have to say your swearing made me laugh out loud, so thanks for that! Made my day!
That you missed your birthday does suck but I think (if you don’t mind me being a bit cheeky) if you missed your birthday, I reckon that makes you 23 still, so make sure you get a 24th birthday party next year😉. I had a friend whose birthday was Feb 29th and they were very happy to be extra-young from time to time. When you get to 30, being able to legitimately claim only 29 could be good!
I want to wish you the best from about 10 hours north west of you. I had my AVM rupture May 8th and am expecting gamma knife in the next month or so. I agree with Sharon, prayer and patience. It really helped me reading the book My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor. When I first started to read it I could read about a paragraph at a time, thats as long as I could concentrate. It really puts time into perspective. I was 48 years old but used to bouncing back from anything really quickly, not from this thing bleeding though. You have found a great group with an incredible variety of experiences in dealing with these damn things. Take Care.
Glad you are awake and alive! You will bounce back! I am also 24 with a large AVM. Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers, keep us updated on your recovery. Everything will be okay, stay positive.
I’m sorry for your problem. I was 21 when I had a leakage that resulted in a lot of relearning basics as well. I don’t recall three weeks of recovery time after and also had problems with balance, vision, memory for the next six months or so. My prognosis was grim at the time but you never know what can happen; that was over thirty years ago and I am pretty much normal, (relatively speaking) now. I hope and pray for the best for you as well.
Mine ruptured almost 14 years ago and I was unconscious for 2 and 1/2 months. But when I woke up I felt really good. No more bad headaches! I had to learn to walk again but generally speaking nothing was wrong with me. I can’t read too fast but boy can I dance and walk. Thank the Lord for all He did for me; may God Bless you!
God bless! I pray your recovery goes well!