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| Stroke
Survivor of the Month
- September/October page 2  David Smith Mount Vernon, NY Then after being out of sub-acute for about a month on December 4th my family came over to celebrate my birthday and my getting better. All of a sudden I felt weird and was only able to call out my wife's name…. I went into convulsions. I was having a seizure. My wife and brother were able to catch me before falling. No one at the house had experienced seeing a seizure before and didn't know what to do. Someone got the grandchildren out of the room but not before they saw this. They were traumatized for months; my grandson had to go into therapy. (He was with me in Texas when I wasn't really feeling well and with my wife when she rushed to the hospital and saw me in a contorted state and now saw me having a seizure). I don't remember much, but EMS and the fire department came and I seized again in the ambulance before reaching the hospital. The doctors were given the medical history and realized I was not on any anti-seizure medication which is common for stroke survivors. My wife, Shirley, was very upset that anti-seizure medication had not been given before my discharge and we weren't told that it is common to have. I was discharged after 8 days and placed on Dilantin. The doctors had a hard time determining the proper dosage, because the Dilantin level would continuously fluctuate. In May, after getting upset with the gardener, I began to feel weird. Within a few minutes, Shirley noticed my strange behavior. I was hallucinating, unable to walk (she tried to get me back into the bed), had a headache and then I suffered another seizure. When she went to open the door for EMS and returned I was having another seizure and had another in the emergency room. Eventually I was told the Dilantin level had gotten too low and should be kept in the upper range of 15-20. I was released with a new dosage. After being monitored, my doctor noticed the level kept dropping and would not stabilize. I have had a few incidents with the level going as high as 40. My doctor is now trying different doses to get a good level. I feel confident that this will happen. Since my stroke, I see another side of society. There were many down times, especially in the hospitals when you come across inept nurses, aides, therapists and even doctors. When speaking with you, treating you or caring for you their demeanor leaves a lot to be desired. I think that many need sensitivity training. Now that I am a stroke survivor, my wife and I are much more aware of society in general and how people treat you. We are now aware of the health insurance conglomerate with its red tape that causes much frustration -- frustration of trying to get information, advice, needed care and how everything is calculated. There are many obstacles in the way, but you must continue to go forward." 
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