Day 1 November 20th 2010
Today my life completely turned upside down, so far the doctors just say it was a really bad migraine, the doctors are baffled, c’mon I'm just 15!, I cant walk, I cant sit up, I cant even eat! As I lay here, bored out of my mind, I play back the last 12 hours in my head, I recall just sitting on my sofa, just minding my own business and then I got this weird feeling In the left side of my body, it took me a while to realise it was numb, my mum had just came home from the shops and I told her I wasn’t feeling well, she immediately noticed the droop in the side of my face, she phoned 999 and off I went!
Days 2, 3 and 4 November 21st-23rd
I’m lying here in a small room with two beds, I’m occupying one, the other by an elderly woman who I think is called Margaret, there is a blue and white curtain separating us. A young student doctor named Kate comes in every 20-40 minutes to ask me what the date is and where I am, a question I find stupidly obvious but I suppose there are people worse off than me that can’t answer that question. Over the next few days I begin to get my bearings and I start learning the nurses and doctors names, so far my favourite is a youngish auxiliary nurse called Susan, she was the one who talked to mum and dad about what had happened and how to cope with it, I really respected her for that.
Day 34 December 24th
It is Christmas Eve and I actually don’t want to leave. The nurses here are just so nice, the doctors are trying to send me to a specialist rehab unit called “Craig Court” I have decided to just stay here for Christmas instead of spending it somewhere with people I don’t know. The night time nurses are having a Christmas Eve party, of course I am invited
Day 41 December 30th
Today is the day, today they moved me to Craig court, and I’ve been down to meet all the “residents” as they call them, I miss the nurses at ward 39, but I have to move on. I slept from 6.30 last night to 9.00 this morning, I was that tired, I’m still tired, and I’m always tired! I have been downstairs to explore a little; this place has 3 lounges, a games room, a garden, a fully equipped gym, and around 30 bedrooms.
At this time I feel quite peaceful and at home, I do miss home, of course I do, but there’s something about this place that keeps your spirits up, its like, when you live in a place where one of the only things you look forward to is your physiotherapy appointments, it makes you appreciate the little things in life, the ability to roll your
wheelchair into the garden for some fresh air, seeing your parents for just one visit a day, although I did enjoy life as a bachelor, but I did miss home, who wouldn’t?.
I have read up on stroke side effects just to see how other people handle all this and what they went through, some people say they had personality and sense of humour changes, I noticed this too, I was beginning to see things in people that I hadn’t noticed before, I didn’t judge people anymore, I never stared at people who looked or acted different, I always had this feeling inside of me that wanted to help people in some way or another, maybe that was just me growing up and becoming a man, maybe it was the stroke, either way, I liked the new me: maybe this isn’t a bad thing after all!
Day (I’m not quite sure)
I went out on a day trip today, me, 2 residents and 2 carers went to a Harvester bar and grill, I swear it was the best meal I had in months! More importantly I had fun, I felt like a teenager today. We went to Asda on the way home, its weird being out like this, you spend months under hospital care and then, even for those 30 minutes, your free, it’s great.
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