Austin's Story
Katie's Story
Robbie's Story
Stacey's Story
Tasha's Story

Austin’s Story
[Watch Video]
A tall, lanky sophomore with an infectious grin, Austin of LaVista is also a stroke survivor. At 15, Austin was running warm-up laps for his physical education class at Papillion LaVista High School when he was struck first by a numbing headache. He slowed his pace, stumbled and collapsed with paralysis on the left side of his body. As classmates and coaches gathered around him, some thought he was just goofing around, but Austin knew that something was seriously wrong.

At the hospital, doctors discovered that a blood clot had traveled to his brain, causing a stroke. As a result, Austin’s left arm and leg were paralyzed, and his thoughts were scrambled. Almost immediately, he began to have therapy to help him walk, speak, and focus more clearly. Austin said, “I was determined to get better. So many people where I did my therapy had worse problems, and I tried to stay positive. I want to run and play basketball, and I want to get my driver’s license!” To strengthen his arm and leg, Austin did aquatic exercises, and since he likes to play basketball, shooting hoops was part of his therapy. He also worked with a speech therapist to improve his ability to speak.

Today, Austin continues to have therapy. He wears a brace on his left leg, and he’s still working on getting better use of his left hand by using a special device. Austin participates in many school activities, running a camera for the broadcast club and keeping score for several of the school’s sports teams. Austin says, “I didn’t know a teenager could have a stroke, but by working hard I’m able to do many of the things I like to do.” He willingly shares his story about having a stroke so people will understand that strokes can happen to many different people. And he wants to encourage those who have strokes not to give up. TOP

Katie’s Story
[Watch Video]
Katie, from Lincoln , may speak softly, but she has a powerful story to tell. At 11, Katie had her first stroke during a surgical procedure. Katie doesn’t remember having the stroke, but she does remember the effects of the stroke. It left her with some paralysis on her left side, but with therapy, she was on the way to recovering use of her left hand and leg when a second stroke occurred.

Katie describes what happened that day. “I was outside with my dad practicing one of my physical therapy exercises. I was getting a little tired, so we decided to stop for the day. I remember reaching for my glasses case, but my fingers just wouldn’t work to grasp it. My mom and dad knew that something was wrong right away. We went to a hospital emergency room, and after a while they all agreed that I’d had another stroke. This time the damage was more severe, but it still affected my left side.”

Now 15, Katie is a sophomore at the Lincoln Science Focus Program. She wears a brace for her left ankle, has restricted use of her left hand, still has vision problems and continues with therapy. But Katie describes her strokes as “bumps in the road.” She volunteers regularly at Madonna Rehabilitation Center and took the training to become a therapy pet handler. Katie is becoming more involved with organizations that allow her to speak about her experiences with stroke and encourage anyone with a debilitating illness. TOP

Robbie’s Story
At 32, Robbie, of Murray , experienced her first stroke symptom as she was driving. Suddenly, she remembers feeling “like I could only see half.” She pulled off the road and tested her vision by putting one hand over each eye. Everything was completely dark in her right eye. After about ten minutes, her vision came back. Her physician recommended taking a baby aspirin daily.
A few months later, as she was having a birthday party for her daughter, she was unable to talk or walk. The right side of her face drooped. She was having a stroke. A couple of days later in her doctor’s office, she suffered another stroke. This time, there was some paralysis in her right arm, but with therapy, she was able to return to work.
Several years of stroke-free health went by until age 40 when Robbie suffered a more severe stroke affecting her speech and her right arm and leg. She learned to write and use the computer with her left hand in order to return to work. Then at 42, Robbie was getting ready for work. As she recalls, “I tried to tell my husband something and the words came out all jumbled—I was having another stroke!”

Robbie’s physicians have never been able to determine a cause for her strokes, but she has not had a stroke in the last five years. She says, “I just wake up every day and thank God I have been improving daily - typing with both hands and doing most things that I could not do before." TOP

Stacey’s Story
At 27, stroke was the last thing on Stacey’s mind. A single mom from Plattsmouth, she was working full time and going to school, and was completely unaware that smoking even half a pack of cigarettes a day combined with taking birth control pills could lead to a devastating stroke.
On April 4, 2002, Stacey first experienced short episodes of impaired vision and excruciating headache. She found herself walking into walls and seeing in quadrupled vision. Trips to doctors and an emergency room did not provide a satisfactory explanation beyond the possibility of migraines. On April 5, 2002, she began her day with a shower, but as she was drying her hair, “Boom, suddenly my world was spinning, my head hurt worse than I can explain, and I couldn’t walk,” Stacey said. Doctors still attributed her symptoms to migraines. That Sunday evening, Stacey remembers lying down on her mother’s couch, but her next memory is awakening in the hospital several days later after enduring a stroke and two brain surgeries. She says, “I could not move. I could not eat. I could barely stay awake.”

Stacey’s stroke severely affected her ability to walk, caused vision problems, and hampered her thought process. Three years later, after following intensive physical therapy, Stacey has made a remarkable recovery. She continues to have major motor skill and balance problems, but she is extremely grateful to be able to live and work and care for her daughter. TOP

Tasha’s Story
When Tasha of McCook was 27 and the mother of two young children, she began experiencing symptoms that would lead her on a two-year roller coaster ride. Tasha’s first indication that something was wrong began in December 2001 with an unexplained burning sensation in her right eye.

Tasha describes the feeling, “like having pepper sprayed in my eye.” When home remedies didn’t work, her family took her to a nearby emergency room. On the way, Tasha began to notice other symptoms. “My right arm, hand and fingers were all tingly, my eyes began to cross, my speech became garbled, and I couldn’t hold up my head.” Tests failed to reveal the cause of her symptoms, and they subsided, but in the following weeks, she began having debilitating headaches.

Then in April 2002, Tasha had a stroke. Doctors identified an aneurysm as the cause. After almost a year of therapy, Tasha was doing well at home with help, but suffered from a limp and limited use of her left arm and hand.

In October 2003, Tasha had another even more damaging stroke. She said, “I was trapped inside a body that couldn’t talk, move, eat, swallow or drink. Even breathing was difficult.” After surgery and months of therapy, Tasha now walks with a cane, but she’s able to drive and take care of her children. She says, “I’m extremely happy to be alive.” TOP