Rita Ferdinardo: Am I Too Young To Have a Stroke?
Rita Ferdinardo, Nursing Professional Development Generalist at Advocate Condell Medical Center, shared on LinkedIn:
‘‘I had a stroke.
A strange thing to say at 27.
There were no warning signs, no risk factors just a terrible headache on a Monday night.
That headache quickly turned into left-sided numbness and an inability to get my words out.
I remember sitting there thinking to myself, ‘Am I having a stroke? No… It can’t be. I’m too young.‘
Vertebral artery dissections are actually one of the leading causes of stroke in young and middle-aged adults.
There are only two causes: traumatic or spontaneous.
In my case, it was spontaneous. I can’t recall any injury or event that would have caused a tear such as heavy lifting, chiropractor or rollercoaster.
Stroke can happen at any age. I’m incredibly grateful it was caught.
But I can’t help wondering if a stroke would have been taken more seriously from the start if I had been older.
And if sharing my story makes even one clinician pause and consider stroke in a young patient, then it’s worth it.”
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