Talking About TIA

It Can Happen to Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere
It was early August of 2008, and the summer was in full swing. I had an exciting weekend ahead — we were hosting a party at our home with a bunch of friends and family — so I started my Saturday morning with a trip to the gym and some errands with my wife, Debbie, and two of my three young daughters. But a quick stop to buy a new car seat proved to be way more than I bargained for.

While in the store, I attempted to speak to Debbie when I realized that I couldn't say her name — it felt like someone had unplugged my mouth from my brain. Thirty seconds later my speech was back to normal, but my arm had also been tingling for a few minutes, and Debbie commented that my symptoms sounded like a stroke. On a whim, I Googled stroke symptoms on my BlackBerry and realized what I experienced might have been a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or stroke, and that I should seek urgent diagnosis and treatment. I didn't want to go to the hospital as the weekend had just started and we had a lot to do before the party at our house that night. I tried convincing myself that I was fine, but after mulling it over, we drove to the hospital just to be sure everything was okay. Although this decision interrupted a fun weekend, it may have reduced my risk for suffering a more serious stroke.

After telling an ER nurse my symptoms, I was given a buzzer that would go off when a doctor was available to see me. It buzzed within three minutes, and it was then I knew I could be dealing with something serious. ER doctors conducted a series of tests and concluded that I had suffered a minor stroke — MRI results showed evidence of stroke on the left side of my brain, the area that controls speech — but they were perplexed: I was young, exercised regularly and ate a healthy diet, and had normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Strokes don't typically happen to people like me. Because my case was so unique, they kept me at the hospital for further tests, and eventually sent me home with orders to take medication each day. I went for a second opinion and received the same diagnosis of a minor stroke — I still couldn't believe it. Friends in my tight-knit community were also shaken up at their common realization that stroke can happen to anyone.