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Stroke
Survivor of the Month
- May-July 2006 Sometimes
hard work, stamina and Joseph says: "I am currently the Fulton County Economic Development Director for the city of Atlanta. The work I do is very stressful and requires that I work with a "get it done yesterday" attitude. Normally I work 12 - 14 hours a day. Over the course of my career I have worked as Comptroller, City Manager and Director for Community Development in Pennsylvania, Florida and Georgia. They were all demanding positions. About ten years ago I was diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes. I began trying to change my diet, exercise more and take my medicine. However, I admit I never really took the medication on a regular basis. My home life has always been a contributing stress factor. My wife and I got married, had our first child and a set of twins all within three years. It took a lot to maintain the quality of life we wanted. There were many times that I could tell something unusual was going on with my body but I ignored the symptoms. On Friday night of Memorial weekend 2004, I arrived home from work, did my normal activities and got on the phone with Jerome Noble, the Fulton County Purchasing Department Director. It was 8:30 pm. After I got off the phone I began a conversation with my wife and she could not understand what I was saying. Everything seemed normal to me at the time but I could tell from the way she was looking at me that something was wrong. After a while I began to feel like I was moving in slow motion. My wife said the right side of my jaw was drooping and she immediately tried to get me to South Fulton Medical Center twenty minutes from our house.
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Joseph
A. Johnson, Jr.
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