~Lifes Lessons~

.         While lunching with my 84 year old mum last Wednesday she was complaining of numbness in her hand ...within seconds the left side of her lip dropped and her speech was a jumbled mess....she was having a stroke.  Two minutes later it was as if it had never happened.  She responded to each question I threw at her with obvious clarity and correctness so my first assumption was I had been wrong.  Rather than take chances I bundled her into the car and drove back to her unit...a 7 minute drive.....if anyone had ever told me 7 minutes was a long time I would have said they were lying.  In those 7 minutes her speech became jumbled and incoherent and my heart was in my throat trying to watch her, question her and still drive saftely to the unit...the longest 7 minutes of my life.  I promptly rang and ambulance and by which time her speech and reasoning had returned and mum proceeded to argue with me she didnt need an ambulance there was nothing wrong with her.  I made her sit and even as I am talking I can hear the ambulance sirens blaring getting closer.  The ambulance oficers agreed she had had a stroke but it was what they called a 'mini' stroke and while loading her in the ambulance she was having another.
        So that was last Wednesday...it is now Monday and they have lost count of how many of these mini strokes she has had.  there have been no lasting effects from the strokes but it has bought an awareness for her that she can no longer live alone and actally wants to move into a nursing home.  Personally I think she is loving all the wonderful care she is receiving.  But for what ever reason my brother and I are definitley glad of her choice.  The next step is working out where she wants to go and when we can get her in.
         The moral of this story is be aware of you elderly relatives and be aware of the symptons of stroke....my mum was lucky (mostly because she has been on blood thinners for years) but also lucky I had been with her when it happened.