You had a stroke??

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Yeah! Back in May 2021 I had an ischemic stroke while I was swimming on my lunch break. The damage was on the left side of my brain, which mainly affects language. I had aphasia and I couldn’t move my tongue/cheeks/jaw or make any noises before I was treated. I had noninvasive heart surgery to close my PFO (patent foramen ovale/hole in the heart that the clot slipped through), but it was unfortunately unsuccessful. I attended speech therapy for about 3 months, and occupational therapy for 6 months. I’m still recovering and I do homework every day, but I’ve been told my recovery so far has been “textbook” :)

I’d love it if everyone refreshed themselves on the symptoms of stroke! Remember: F. A. S. T.
F: Face (are facial features behaving as they should? e.g. can they puff out their cheeks? Can they smile? Can they stick our their tongue?)
A: Arms (can they raise their arms evenly? (Other tests can include spreading fingers as wide as they can or lifting their toes/feet while keeping their heels on the ground))
S: Speech (can they speak clearly? Can they understand you and/or can they respond?)
T: Time (call emergency services as soon as possible!