Not sure where to put this, but I guess here will do...hope it's OK.
Beer has been my nemesis. I was drinking beer everyday for, probably, the last 20 years or so. (Wow, that freaks me out to write that). Usually I was about a 12 packer/day. Sometimes a bit more...sometimes a bit less. I was always "trying" go be "good". At the beginning of this past summer I managed to cut myself down to a six pack/day and was feeling so good physically and about myself too. I felt like I was being more like a "normal" person - drinking wise. I'd lost over 20 lbs too! (beer was always what put the weight on me) I was so proud of myself!
My world all came crashing down on the morning of July 29th. - 4 days after my 52nd. birthday. I had a stroke on the right side of my brain which affected my left arm and leg. I had been smoking like an excessive idiot - I think replacing my lessened beer consumption with tobacco abuse. I knew I had high blood pressure...but it wasn't "bell ringing" high like my mother's had been, or so I was telling myself. I have no health insurance, so couldn't afford Drs and was, sort of, managing my bp myself with home monitoring and diet. It was stage 1 hypertension on the diastolic, but sometimes worse on the systolic.
I was, actually, extremely lucky. The stroke I suffered was relatively mild. I was sitting at my computer and felt nothing out of the ordinary except that all of a sudden my left arm seemed "disembodied"...like it wasn't mine. My left fingers would not behave or type properly and I couldn't make them. It terrified me. I cried because I knew what had happened. I could walk even though my left leg was a little bit non-coordinated. I carried on with my morning like nothing had happened. My wonderful partner sensed something was up and confronted me later on in the day. I told her what happened, but begged not to go to the ER. I detest hospitals...mostly the waiting. I'm no good at that.
Two days later my blood pressure spiked again and I agreed to let her take me to the ER. I had to get help or I was going to be a lot less lucky next time. It was a total nightmare. My nerves were shot and my anxiety level was so high that I could hardly walk for all the shaking. I sat in a wheelchair and then in an ER bed for what seemed like eternity until I was seen. The Dr. chalked up my visit to "anxiety"...which I had tons of and gave me 1mg. of Ativan. I have never touched any kind of anxiety med in my life. I don't take anything. I had a CAT scan which confirmed that yes, I had had a stroke. I was admitted.
To be continued...
Beer has been my nemesis. I was drinking beer everyday for, probably, the last 20 years or so. (Wow, that freaks me out to write that). Usually I was about a 12 packer/day. Sometimes a bit more...sometimes a bit less. I was always "trying" go be "good". At the beginning of this past summer I managed to cut myself down to a six pack/day and was feeling so good physically and about myself too. I felt like I was being more like a "normal" person - drinking wise. I'd lost over 20 lbs too! (beer was always what put the weight on me) I was so proud of myself!
My world all came crashing down on the morning of July 29th. - 4 days after my 52nd. birthday. I had a stroke on the right side of my brain which affected my left arm and leg. I had been smoking like an excessive idiot - I think replacing my lessened beer consumption with tobacco abuse. I knew I had high blood pressure...but it wasn't "bell ringing" high like my mother's had been, or so I was telling myself. I have no health insurance, so couldn't afford Drs and was, sort of, managing my bp myself with home monitoring and diet. It was stage 1 hypertension on the diastolic, but sometimes worse on the systolic.
I was, actually, extremely lucky. The stroke I suffered was relatively mild. I was sitting at my computer and felt nothing out of the ordinary except that all of a sudden my left arm seemed "disembodied"...like it wasn't mine. My left fingers would not behave or type properly and I couldn't make them. It terrified me. I cried because I knew what had happened. I could walk even though my left leg was a little bit non-coordinated. I carried on with my morning like nothing had happened. My wonderful partner sensed something was up and confronted me later on in the day. I told her what happened, but begged not to go to the ER. I detest hospitals...mostly the waiting. I'm no good at that.
Two days later my blood pressure spiked again and I agreed to let her take me to the ER. I had to get help or I was going to be a lot less lucky next time. It was a total nightmare. My nerves were shot and my anxiety level was so high that I could hardly walk for all the shaking. I sat in a wheelchair and then in an ER bed for what seemed like eternity until I was seen. The Dr. chalked up my visit to "anxiety"...which I had tons of and gave me 1mg. of Ativan. I have never touched any kind of anxiety med in my life. I don't take anything. I had a CAT scan which confirmed that yes, I had had a stroke. I was admitted.
To be continued...
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