Have a headache? Vision Blurred but just for a moment?

[safari57]

That would describe me very early last Friday morning. Into the office 3 hours before most folks to get a big project done (my usual start time) and sitting at my computer when I couldn't read the typing all of a sudden. Went to get up and was very light headed. Turned out some peers had come in early too and for the life of me I couldn't remember their names. One of them had rec'd an email a while back about this very thing and asked me my wife's phone number which I couldn't remember - very weird since I call her most days. She wasted no time in calling an ambulance and shipping me off to a hospital. By the time I got there I was pretty much over it, and normally I may have just put my head down for a wee bit and it would have passed. Good thing I didn't, or that she wouldn't let me. It turned out I had a mini stroke. And just after I got in a lady was brought in with the same thing. She had a bunch more of these earlier on, 12 to be exact. I am fine now, on blood thinners as it appears that a very tiny clot did a trip through my brain and finding nothing there to get hung up on passed on. It could have been worse, and it could have happened half an hour earlier when I was commuting in on the freeway. I go see a neurologist in two weeks and until then am mostly stuck at home. The thing is, if someone had not been there who had a tiny bit of knowledge I would have passed this off as an minor blip. So take heed, folks, here's a website that gives more detail, and a very brief overview. It would of been a sad day for my wife, my airstream and I suspect my mom and my kitties if this had gotten away. If someone you know is having a similar experience and they can't remember things they should know, call a doctor. By the way, the doctor asked me to spell my middle name backwards. Dirty trick. By this time I'd already passed the clot and was on the road to health, and I did get it - after I remembered what my middle name is. Very weird. Barry

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/tia/tia.htm

What is Transient Ischemic Attack?
A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a transient stroke that lasts only a few minutes. It occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is briefly interrupted. TIA symptoms, which usually occur suddenly, are similar to those of stroke but do not last as long. Most symptoms of a TIA disappear within an hour, although they may persist for up to 24 hours. Symptoms can include: numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body; confusion or difficulty in talking or understanding speech; trouble seeing in one or both eyes; and difficulty with walking, dizziness, or loss of balance and coordination.

[tin sista]

I am so sorry that you had that experience, but so grateful that folks were there to know what to do. My grandma had the same thing happen, and the result was the same, blood thinner (warfarin). There is so much that can be done when help arrives quickly. Thanks for sharing this, yes more folks should know about it! Take care!

[Boondocker]

Safari,

If it is any help, I am wrapping up a PhD right now in nuroscience, and as it happens my area is neural injury. If I can be of any help with any questions you may have please feel free to drop me a line.

[CaptainJones]

Glad to hear you are OK now. Keep ahead if it. I had a spell a year ago August that I almost passed off, but went on to the doctor and ended up with a triple by-pass.

Greg

[Stefrobrts]

Very scary! Glad you're ok, and glad you have a pushy co-worker who was looking out for you!

[StingrayL82]

Barry,

I'm glad you have co-workers who knew what to do. It wouldn't be the same around here without you.


Frederic

[3Ms75Argosy]

make sure you've had a carotid duplex series (a sonogram if you will) of your neck vessels. Narrowing, blockage or even an aneurism of these vessels will cause the symptoms you demonstrated. It's a easy, non-invasive test. I'd also check your cholestorel levels, and get a cardiac workup as well (including an echocardiogram - to rule out valve disfunction or vegitations growing on the valve leaftlets as a source of your clot).

All of this is a MINIMUM type of workup that I'd suggest to any family member with TIA's. Coumadin helps stop the formation of clots, but doesn't eliminate the source of them.

I wish you well! I'm glad everything turned out ok!
Marc
(current ICU RN)

[safari57]

Thank you for the support and the suggestions. I get to spend a day having tests done in two weeks. There is some thought that this could have happened due to prior surgery to my neck to remove a tumour many years ago. It has been bothering me a lot lately and suddenly it's not quite so bothersome. It's scary how many people I've spoken to who mention they had similar experiences and took a nap and that's as far as it has gone. They've not mentioned it to their spouse, their doctor, or until I spoke to them, to anyone at all. I hope they take some initiative from this and go get checked. I will keep you posted. If there's an upside to this, given I have been instructed to stay put and not do much from a work aspect until the tests are done, I get to play in my Airstream. Sure it's still in the back yard, but being able to go out there during the work day and do trinket stuff is great. I'll keep you posted, and again, thank you very much for your suggestions, kind words, and positive thoughts.
Barry

[Fyrzowt]

Barry, I stumbled on this older thread, and was wondering how things are going. If you'd rather not go into it in a public forum, no problem, I understand. As a Fire Paramedic we see these symptoms quite often. Was curious as to the underlying cause since you mentioned a couple of possibilities.
Hope things are going great medically, and that your aluminitis is under control as well.
Dave

[FreshAir]

This is exactly what happened to, Lynn, my wife in March. She was at work also. She was rushed to the hospital, diagnosed with TIA. and was released in a few hours seeminly perfectly recovered. The next morning I was awaked when she went to the bathroom. I waited until she returned. She did but she walked as if she were asleep. When she reached the side of the bed she toppled backwards to the floor. She fell like a tree...never bent her knees or reached out with her arms. She has been home on disability since. She has been going for therapy treatments twice a week. She has recovered the use of her right leg, arm and hands however here problem is comunicating her thoughts. She is making slow progress. She has some damage to the corneas of her eyes. I am angry that the hospital did not keep her overnight for observation. I have since retired nd can care for her. She will be ok. You are very fortunate that you received good care. My best to you. Life IS short.
Neil.

[Fyrzowt]

Neil, all the best to you and your wife, it's tough to see a loved one go through something like that, plus all of the care, $$ and other issues that further complicate things. I hope she continues to improve,
Dave

[safari57]

Originally Posted by anholman

This is exactly what happened to, Lynn, my wife in March. She was at work also. She was rushed to the hospital, diagnosed with TIA. and was released in a few hours seeminly perfectly recovered. The next morning I was awaked when she went to the bathroom. I waited until she returned. She did but she walked as if she were asleep. When she reached the side of the bed she toppled backwards to the floor. She fell like a tree...never bent her knees or reached out with her arms. She has been home on disability since. She has been going for therapy treatments twice a week. She has recovered the use of her right leg, arm and hands however here problem is comunicating her thoughts. She is making slow progress. She has some damage to the corneas of her eyes. I am angry that the hospital did not keep her overnight for observation. I have since retired nd can care for her. She will be ok. You are very fortunate that you received good care. My best to you. Life IS short.
Neil.

Neil, I hope your wife is continuing to mend. It turns out my problem is twofold. The stroke in January, then heart attack in August stem from a clotting issue I had in the seventies that was never diagnosed properly at the time and now has come back to haunt me. The other problem that has come up is minimal use of my arms and hands - both sides, constant numbness and difficulty doing things like driving . Fortunately?????my wife is a good driver so we're getting by. This is the result of heavy doses of chemo and radiotherapy I had 16 years ago and later this month I go to find out if there's a way to address this. I'm hoping to get my driving ability back for the coming summer. Right now up to 1/2 hour is my max, then my wife gets behind the wheel and I close my eyes and wish like heck I could drive again. That all said, I'm blessed that this is all the problems I've had

Good luck to you and your wife Neil. I know how difficult it is on the care giver/partner as well.

Barry

[Boondocker]

Hey Neil and Barry, I wish you both all the best with your situations. For what its worth, I am a neuroscientist whose specialty is neuroinjury. If I can be of service in any way, feel free to contact me. I will be happy to anwser any questions I can for you.


By the way neil, your trade wind looks fantastic!

[safari57]

Thank you Rodney. I will keep that in mind and very much appreciate your kind offer. Right now things are tracking pretty good and I'm hoping in the not too distant future that I'll be back to some semblence of my old self. My wife isn't sure she wants me to be back to exactly the way I was . She keeps saying it's kinda nice to have me on the quieter side of the equation for a change and she likes the weight loss. Hmmmm, not sure what to make of that last one - does she mean I might have been just a tad overweight before? Okay, so going down a couple of waist sizes might make me look a tad different, in my mind I look the same.... It's an interesting thing though to go to do something I used to do out of hand and now, in some cases, I can't remember how the heck to do it and I have to stop and rethink the whole thing through. It makes one feel young again....

Barry