It's been 6 months since I got a stroke. Let's just say it has been a hell of a ride. There have been tears of joy and sorrow. There have been both strengths and weaknesses.
I started this journey with hemiparesis, ie total paralysis of the right side of my body + loss of speech. I have moved to a wheelchair, to walking with a stick, and today I walk without additional balance support, only with the help of an orthosis, which helps me do a dorsal flexion on my right leg. Sensitivity has also recovered quite well in the foot, but the toes won’t come to life yet. Neither with sensitivity nor with movement like peroneus muscle and ankle. The arm moves quite well from the shoulder, from the elbow it’s movement is more difficult, and the wrists and fingers won’t obey the orders yet at all, just like the toes. Spasticity is still present in both - the leg and the arm (much more in the arm than in the leg), but it is slowly but steadily decreasing. The speech is almost back. Some consonant clusters are still difficult to say and the mouth and its surroundings are still insensitive (for example, sometimes the slobber flows from the corner of the mouth so I won’t understand it until it reaches the neck), but overall I think my body has done a great job until now.
I have done oh so many training hours , massage hours and all kinds of other therapy hours. Many have asked me what about work. That's my job right now - to recover. Thank God I have parents who can allow me to focus 100% on recovery.
In the course of this recovery, I have decided that whatever may help, I will try, and thanks to that, I have had a wonderful experiences and moments and met both miraculous and interesting people. So, although I am not even close to 100% recovery, the stroke and its aftermath have put me to the test a lot, therefore I have learned so much as a person and developed spiritually that I like current Karmel far more than the Karmel I was back November 23, 2020.
My biggest and favorite achievement at the moment is that a few days ago I was able to go FULLY BY MYSELF for a small walk with my dog for the first time in 6 months and it was also captured in the form of a picture! 🐶 ♥ ️
And yes, I did it, after a 3-minute cold morning shower (which is absolute heaven), in my favorite comfy outfit - SAFU poncho. By the way, if you also want a super good and comfortable poncho to wear after shower, after swim, after surf, after workout, waking up in the morning, cooking, etc., you name it, then