The Day it all changed
It has been a year since my life changed forever. Some of it, not most of it is still visible to me. Pictures in my head like it was yesterday. On December 17, 2024, I underwent bariatric surgery for weight loss. It seemed pretty straight forward. I chose this over a hip replacement, mainly because my employer's insurance covered it. After surgery, my blood pressure spiked whenever I tried to stand or walk in the hospital. This was my first experience with this, so I asked the nurses if I needed a cardiologist. I was told no and my hospital stay was extended by several days for additional observation.
This was not the day of my first stroke, which marked when things began to go wrong. After a week in the hospital I was finally discharged. I was still sore from surgery and felt lightheaded at first, but I was relieved to be home. Being home at first felt normal but after being home for a day I started to feel bad again. I called the doctors office like I was instructed to. I was told I was probably just dehydrated and needed to increase my fluid intake. It was recommended to drink pickle juice as well as that might help with how I was feeling.
On January 2, 2025, my life changed completely. I was watching football game with one of my sons. I remember sweating profusely so much so that my recliner was drenched in sweat. I couldn’t find comfortable position no matter what I tried. One football game had ended my son got up and told me had to go to work. I told him oaky and I would see him the next day. I remember jokingly saying to him to check on the old man if he got a chance. We hugged and left for his shift.
The next thing I remember is getting up going to the bathroom and on the way back to my chair my legs felt like Jello and I collapsed. The next thing I remember is my son came in and found me passed out on the floor. After some prodding and help from him he got me to my bed. Got me dressed and took me to hospital.
The next thing I remember was him talking to his mother, my wife, on the phone explaining my condition.
He took me from the hospital in Springdale, AR to Fayetteville, AR because they were better equipped for my condition. I remember waking up because the nurse came in to check my IV bag. Overall, I felt well rested, like I was finally able to sleep for a few days. However, ten days later I had a second stroke that changed my life, as a stroke survivor we are taught the acronym F.A.S.T. there was nothing fast about this process —I'll share that story in a future blog.