Hole In the Heart: Of All Stroke Survivors, We Are the 10%!
Admit it... You saw the title and thought this was about the Occupy movement, didn't you? The answer is that I am like Hall of Fame football player Tedy Bruschi, who when I met him two and a half years ago, I had no idea I would come to have something more in common with than our love for our beloved New England Patriots.
Friends, as I sit in a wheelchair writing this with one functional hand on the 14th day after suffering a mild stroke on my late brother Yakubu's 45th birthday anniversary January 20th, 2012, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge your thoughts, prayers, words of encouragement , flowers, cards, gifts, texts, FB posts, and visits. I've changed the ringtone on my phone back to Michael Jackson's "You Are Not Alone, " for that is exactly how you've all made me feel.
So how come a 41 year-old can have a stroke? There are several answers to this question, ranging from risk factors to family history, etc. Some of you may recall that my Dada died in March 1989 at age 55, 2 days after he suffered a stroke
What happened in my case? I'll start by conjuring up an analogy that my US based frirends can relate to - that of retired New England Patriots All-Pro Linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who suffered a stroke at age 31, two weeks after helping his team to a 3rd Superbowl World Championship. We are both part of the 10% of the population in whom the hole in our hear between the two upper chambers does not close after birth (the article says it's 25-40%, but I'm going with my cardiologist Dr. Cheema on the 10%. One of the links below goes further to explain why" patent -foramen-ovale" or PFO, the so called hole in the heart, can result in a stroke in people like Tedy and me. At this time, my primary course of treatment is aspirin, which is also referenced in the article. I'm also on blood thinners (Fragmin), cholesterol meds (Zocor) and blood pressure meds (Lisinopril). Another link describes the type of stroke I had - a Lacunar Stroke, affecting a part of my brain called the Corona Radiata. Mine was a Pure Motor Stroke, causing weakness in my left leg, left arm, and the left side of my face with minimal speech impairment.
I have two reasons for writing this: 1 - To answer the questions "What happened to you"and "why/how could it happen?" 2)In the hopes that you my friends and family, may become more aware about strokes, their warning signs, and their prevention.
I have newfound mad respect for nurses and the things they put up with, and am thankful to my doctors and therapists at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital for the magic they do everyday around me.
I close by acknowledging the love of family that I have felt these last twoweeks like never before - especially Ibro who put everything on hold to come up from Maryland to spend 12 straight days with me, with plans to return again in a few days. Mostly because ofthe love of family, any desire on my part to feel sorry for myself was quickly cast asunder.
Remain blessed!!!
Cheers,
~ Musa
http://articles.boston.com/2005-02-18/sports/29216944_1_bruschi-family-patriots-pro-bowl-linebacker-patriots-headquarters
http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2005/03/tedy-bruschis-patent-foramen-ovale-pfo-caused-stroke.html
http://know-pfo.org/2009/05/28/we-need-to-do-more/
http://stroke.about.com/od/causesofstroke/a/lacunar_strokes.htm
With #54 himself, future Hall of Fame New England Patriots linebacker Teddy Bruschi
