Preface
On August 19, 2023, it was 5 am and I was playing my game on my tablet in bed, trying to get sleepy enough to go to sleep. The fingers on my right hand started tingling like it was falling asleep (but I wasn't!). I was lying on my left side as always and couldn't figure out why my right hand would be falling asleep. I continued to play. Then my whole hand was tingly. Then the right side of my face was tingly, then up my right arm! WTF?!
Story
It was about 6:30 am and things were not getting better. My sister, Toni, was still recovering from cataract surgery in one eye and I didn't want to wake her to drive me to the hospital. I called my nephew & his wife on their phones, several times, but no response. I tried walking into the next room to get a Gatorade and had a little trouble walking with my right leg. I couldn't keep hold of the bottle in my right hand.
Okay, this is serious now. I knew I needed to go to the ER but how to get there. Finally about 9:30 am, I heard my sister in the kitchen. She's awake. She can call an ambulance. So I went out to the kitchen and said, "I'm having some trouble. I think I'm having a stroke. Can you call an ambulance?" She did and they came within 10 minutes. They took vitals and did the tests, looking for drooping mouth, slurred words, & arm drop. The last one there was a little evidence of a one inch drop on my right arm. Off to ER!
ER is always an adventure but it's better when you come by ambulance. You get seen right away and are put into an exam room. They did the same tests for stroke. They brought a portable x-ray to see what they could see. I saw many physicians and nurses and tech people. An PT and an OT checked me out for possible needed therapy. The nurse couldn't get an acceptable BP (180/120!) because they wouldn't listen to me. My BP was highly elevated due to pumping it up TOO HIGH! Finally, one nurse listened and got 135/80 and I qualified to be admitted. This was about midnight. I had walked down the hall to the bathroom when the OT was there, just to prove that things had improved enough that I could walk okay. The tingling had subsided enough that it was only my right hand and right side of my face.
I spent the night for observation. James (nephew) stayed by my side and made sure they treated me right. When I got to my room, the nurse took my BP and it was 114/70! She didn't pump it up past 140! Thank you! I had to call for an attendant every time I had to pee (so I wouldn't fall!). I wasn't going to fall but they had to do it for prevention. I had to catch it all to be measured so they knew my kidneys were functioning. I hadn't gotten any sleep for nearly 48 hours! The hospital is NOT where you get to sleep. The food was tolerable. And most of the care I received was wonderful and expedient. I had an MRI at about 10 pm and then was admitted around midnight.
One nurse was a little snippy when I asserted myself about the BP. I insisted on a manual cuff and NOT the automatic machine. I told her I had White Coat Syndrome (along with PTSD) and the machine drives my BP artificially through the roof! She stood at the door and said, "I've been to nursing school and I've practiced for three years!" That didn't have anything to do with her ability to listen to a patient! She left in a huff and didn't come back. Good. Because the next nurse took my BP and didn't pump it up past 140 and got 135/80! That qualified me to be admitted.
The doctors came the next day and said I'd had a TIA. The MRI was needed because it wasn't evident on the x-ray. It was small. I needed to be on blood thinners and Lipitor to bring my cholesterol down. I needed to be watched for 48 hours (which they didn't tell me, they told my sister & nephew).
If I had gone to the ER within 4 hours of the first symptoms they could have medicated me and maybe I would have done better. I just didn't think it was that serious.
Conclusion
All in all, I was thankful to only be in there for one night. I am thankful that it was mild (mini). I am working on doing better. Eating well and moving more.
My right thumb and index finger tips are still tingling and the right side of my face in a thin strip down the edge of my nose, upper & bottom lips and teeth haven't recovered. No one has an opinion when they will. I've seen the Neurologist (as follow up) and he thinks I'm doing fine. I have to see him again in a few months. I've seen the Cardiologist and he wants me to do a stress test and one week monitoring to eliminate Atrial Fibrillation from possibly being the cause. I've seen more doctors in two months that I've seen in the past 10 years!
I'm trying to do better.
