So my stroke was 7 years ago yesterday.
I've come so far in that time it's almost hard to recognize myself.
My life is kind of broken up into pre/post stroke.
Prestroke was bad. I was on opiates and I don't remember much of my son's first 3 years. It was a dark time in my life. I was broken.
Post stroke was horrible in a different way. I learned that it can always be worse.
But I also learned what I was capable of if I wanted it badly enough. I learned that broken doesn't mean dead
1/*
^^^
I did want to give up at first. Fully half my body just stopped responding to my will! I couldn't go to the bathroom myself, feed myself, even brush my teeth properly.
And then I saw my kids. And I wanted to go home with them. So I fought.
I started with my thumb. I stared at it, telling it in my head to MOVE. After a week, it did and I moved on. It came faster after that. Every few days I'd get something else moving. And next thing I knew, I was walking.
took 2 months, but I did it!
2/*
^^
My point is this:
The docs told me I'd get "maybe 20%" of my body back. They had to change that number weekly.π
I fought for my kids.
The human body can do magical things when put to the test. But it can also fail spectacularly.
Kiss your loved ones, you never know when you won't get another chance.
Tell them you love them, appreciate them.
Don't take time for granted.
Love may be invisible, but it is one of the strongest things we experience.
3/3
