Shortly after I got out of the hospital 3 years ago, a friend and former coworker sent me a link to an announcement from Valley Medical Center in Renton, WA, about the Stroke Club. Despite the commute from downtown Seattle, this would become the first support group I attended.
It's there that I met Sarah Devine, a neurology nurse practitioner who led the group. Since then, the group has grown, we've heard from a wide assortment of speakers, attendees have come and gone, and now Sarah is handing over the reins of the group while she prepares to take her own well deserved break.
Before she leaves, though, I wanted to sit down and talk with her more about her own path.
Bio
Sarah received her MsN-ARNP in 2011 from Seattle Pacific University. After graduating, she worked in the post -hospital setting of Nursing Home rounding for several years -a perfect setting for learning geriatrics and internal medicine.
Her nursing career started in 1996, also in geriatrics, for the next 15 years she nursed in cardiology, chronic disease management and hospice in the all settings -hospitals, clinics, nursing facilities and patient homes. It was this broad view of nursing and health care that gave her adequate perspective to translate the confusing language of healthcare to the counties most vulnerable people.
She lives in Seattle with her husband where they are lucky enough to live in the same state as their four grown children
Roles
It's quite significant how our roles define how we see people. Prior to our chat, I never would have guessed Sarah had a liberal arts background, was the child of immigrants, or spent time as a cardiac nurse or hospice nurse. Granted, none of that seems out of character. But once we meet someone and put them in a certain bucket, that's how we seem them -- Nurse Practitioner and Stroke Clinician facilitating a support group and treating patients.
The lesson here on one level is, of course to recognize that the members of our care teams are individual people, too, with their own stories and paths. We may not see or hear those stories in our brief interactions, but the are there, and they shape the people we deal with.
Perhaps the more important lesson, though, is to understand how people see us -- others meet us and put us into a limited bucket with their own perception of what a stroke survivor is, what a care giver is, what an OT is, what a PT is, what a doctor is, etc.
When people make limited assumptions about us based on our role, it's easy to become offended that they're not seeing us as whole people with a history. But give them a break. We do it too. It's part of human nature. And recognize that that view goes both ways.
Grief
Sarah talked about helping survivors grieve for their previous life. Because this new life is different and can be a sharp break from our previous life. It's a concept I've heard before and I think we've talked about it in previous episodes.
But the new concept to me was when she talked about her cardiac patients feeling a sense of betrayal at their bodies. It's the betrayal we never expect to come.
As someone who has always been comfortable thinking in brain space, and who identifies as Ravenclaw, the stroke does feel like a betrayal. I was never an athlete. I could barely strum some notes on the mandolin, and I've never been the life of the party. But I have been a big reader, and I love thinking about things. I can get lost in daydreams and playing out all sorts of scenarios in my head. I can write and share concepts and stories. I've allied myself closely with my mind.
And then it betrayed me by, in part, dying.
Our lives can be turned upside down, not from the outside, but from the inside. And that makes that sense of betrayal that much more severe.
Hack of the Week
Sleep is free medicine. Living with a neurological condition means the brain works overtime and simply needs more sleep. Stroke survivors who find themselves struggling more than normal may simply have been over taxing the brain. The best way to combat that, and to overcome neuro-fatigue is simple to stay hydrated and take a nap.
There aren't a ton of advantages to having a stroke, but socially acceptable naps is one to embrace.
Links
| Sarah on Facebook | |
| Stroke Club | https://www.valleymed.org/Our-Services/Neuroscience/Stroke/Stroke-Club-Flyer/ |
| Tango Stride on Strokecast | |
| Find Stroke Support Group | |
| Strokecast Community on Facebook | |
| Strokecast on Instagram | |
| Wil Wheaton on Depression |
Where do we go from here?
- What does Sarah's story make you think about? Let us know in the Strokecast Facebook community at Strokecast.com/FacebookGroup.
- To find a stroke support group in the US, visit Strokecast.com/findsupport.
- Follow Strokecast on Instagram at Strokecast.com/Instagram.
- Don't get best…get better.
Kerry Wilkinson had a hemorrhagic stroke 5 years ago in 2014. Melia, his wife, became his primary caregiver and aggressively drove his recovery ensuring he got the medical support he needed. She's been sharing her insights in blog posts on the Strokecast website.
Peter Evans had his hemorrhagic stroke in the fall of 2017. Ria, his wife, became his primary caregiver and together they navigated the new emotional landscape of post-stroke life. They've candidly shared their story of mental health and emotional struggles with us in prior episodes and blog posts.
Peter continues to this day contributing on-line content for Stroke resources and putting his years of Project Management to good use, paying it forward to all his fellow stroke survivors.
