Stroke!

A LEADING cause of death and chronic disability in the Western industrialized world is stroke. The very word “stroke” implies the suddenness with which a “brain attack” occurs. One moment, you may be feeling fine, and the next moment, you feel as if you were hit by a bolt of lightning—a major stroke can abruptly and dramatically change your life. Cruelly maiming and crippling you, it may render you speechless, wreak havoc on your emotions, alter your personality and powers of cognition, and thrust upon you a seemingly endless struggle to regain the normal life you and your family once knew.

Consider Ellen Morgan.a On Wednesday, Ellen was a healthy, active 64-year-old. On Thursday, while shopping with her husband, Ellen suddenly lost her ability to speak, and her face became distorted. Her body weakened, and she lurched as if in a drunken condition. Ellen was suffering a major stroke!

In the aftermath of the stroke, Ellen was so disabled that she could not do the simplest of things, like bathing or dressing herself. Unable to write, knit, or sew, she became plagued with bouts of uncontrollable weeping and overwhelming fatigue. In all of this, Ellen’s thought processes were not impaired; however, feelings of embarrassment would arise when she felt that perhaps others looked upon her as a simpleton. Later, Ellen explained: “Few realize how the shock of this sudden change affects one emotionally and psychologically. I almost felt as though it were the end of my existence as a person.”

What causes a stroke? Is everyone who has a stroke affected in the same way? How have survivors coped with this disease? How do families of stroke survivors cope? What can all of us do to provide support? Awake! examines such questions and brings you in touch with the lives of stroke survivors and their families who share their struggle.

[Footnote]