I Had a Stroke When I Was 26

by Nina Mitchell

I am a quirky young woman whose Mind went Pop. Mindpop. My stroke took away my limbs and speech for a while. Here are some chronicles…

I. Glamorous

Often it is hard to feel glamorous when you are disabled.

Sometimes it is hard to feel glamorous when you are not disabled.

Who feels glamorous?

II. Thank you

In the hospital, I had lots of visitors. I couldn’t talk much though. If I was awake I managed to say “Thank you.”

Later, my mother said that I am nicer in the hospital than out.

III. How to Take a Stroke Shower

Squeeze your shampoo out of its bottle with your good hand onto your bad hand, like soapy ketchup. But your bad hand can’t reach all the way up to your head. So put the bottle down and scoop the shampoo with your good hand off your bad hand and onto your head. Next, conditioner…

IV. Hospital

After my stroke had stabilized, I was transferred to a rehab hospital, to mend. In the neuro ward there were all kinds of patients, evidence of calamities: car accidents, strokes, aneurysms, etc.

My first roommate there was a teenage girl who had tried to shoot herself, but missed. She had had brain surgery and had to wear a helmet to protect her skull afterward. While I was there, she was discharged to a nursing home, stuck in a wheelchair for life.

The nurses had a name for a particular brand of patient: “STB,” for Stupid Teenage Boy. When I was there, I met one, a 17-year-old who had been racing another teenager in his car and ran into a tree. Now he was in a wheelchair, spoke with an unnaturally high voice, and giggled a lot for no reason. STB.

V. Sneak Out

Just before I was discharged from the hospital, my friends snuck me out to go to a party.

It was a very James Bond escapade: look left, look right, coast is clear… Unlike James Bond, I had a cane and I couldn’t move fast.

Hobble, hobble, hobble…

Previously: Other Mindpop Posts.

Nina Mitchell had a stroke when she was 26. More chronicles are at Mindpop or Facebook.

© 2011 by Nina Mitchell, The material in this article is protected by copyright and may not be copied or published or otherwise distributed without the Author’s permission. All Rights Reserved.