I’m 48 years old, but here's something you probably don't know about me. 3 years ago (in 2015), I had a stroke. Not a TIA (mini stroke), but a real one. It was centrally located in my brain, but affected my right side, It's called hemiparesis ... Imagine if your strong hand fell asleep- and you were trying to comb your hair, or brush your teeth, or even wipe your butt.
For those of you who remember my "I'm fine but I had a heart scare" issue from 2 years ago (where I had an angiogram (camera snaked into my heart) but I have 0% blockage, yay), here's what I never told you happened a year before that...
I was at my girlfriend’s house the night before, and left Moore (OK), heading back to Norman on Sunday morning. A 10 mile drive. At every stop sign and light it seemed like the brakes seemed like they were slow at one, or early at the next. I shook it off. Then I stopped at 7-11, and my leg felt a little asleep, but whatever. Then I got home and mowed the front yard. The mower was drifting to the right, so I figured I had the wheels set wrong. Then I took a shower and my right foot kinda touched a little on the tub when I got in. I thought that was odd. When I got out of the shower, it happened again. Which I found fucking scary. Because I finally started to connect the dots.
So I picked up a pen, and tried to write the words, "I think I'm having a stroke." And that didn't go so well. It was like trying to use my toes to pick up a pen and write. But I had one thing going in my favor- my girlfriend is a Registered Nurse. So I texted her and she was only a mile away- and she came over with a blood pressure cuff and my BP was about 230/120. So yeah, we went to the hospital. I walked in and said, "I think I'm having a stroke." lol
And I stayed overnight- they let me go home on Monday morning, and I didn't tell my work about it until Wednesday- I never missed a day of work, lol. But I do have really good time off with my company.
My stroke was small. The MRI showed a very small "dead" area, very centrally located. My neurologist says I have less than a 5% chance of another stroke. It took a couple weeks for me to stop limping on my right side and to get most of my basic arm control back. Fine motor skills took awhile longer: I couldn't hold a pen properly for about 2 weeks, but I couldn't sign my name regularly for about a month.
I was at close to 100% recovery by maybe 3-4 months. Which is a long time, but very little considering what I could have faced. And man, the fear of even a little headache or stress- fearing it could cause another stroke. That is scary.
So, at age 45, I had a stroke. I really don't want to have another one. And neither do you.
That's why the issue of "pre-existing conditions" matters to me on a personal level. I get my insurance through my work like most people- but if I lost my job or the requirement that insurance companies insure people with pre-existing conditions was changed, then I would be screwed... because having a stroke is a big pre-existing condition.
This election matters to me because Republicans are against requiring insurance companies to include pre-existing conditions, and Democrats want everyone to have health insurance. It is that simple. The Republicans have been trying for 10 years to overturn Obamacare, which at its core includes insurance for pre-existing conditions. Republicans want to overturn 100% of that law. And every single Republican voted for it except for the Vietnam war hero John McCain, and Jeff Flake, who is not running for office again. Which means- Every Single Republican Running for Reelection Voted Many Times to End Coverage for Pre-Existing Conditions.
Some Republican candidates are trying to pretend they want to cover preexisting conditions, but...
REPUBLICANS HATE THE GOVERNMENT REQUIRING INSURANCE COMPANIES TO COVER PREEXISTING CONDITIONS.
(I’m much healthier now- I eat healthier and exercise more- and quit smoking, still drink a little. My heart doctor says I’m good. My neuro doc says under 5% of another stroke. My GP tells me to lose weight. My urologist says, "Damn!” My fiance says, meh. My epidemiologist says use more sun screen. (These last few items were jokes, okay? But seriously, smoking is the top cause of strokes. I was lucky that mine didn’t last long.)