“For the most sensitive among us, the noise can be too much.” – Jim Carrey If you’ve walked into a store and the music was so loud you couldn’t think, if you’ve had a stroke, you probably left. Or never went in at all. Auditory and sensory overload is real. Loud noise can impact your focus, mood, and cause stress, irritability, and anxiety. This is not the “if it’s too loud, you’re too old” kind of noise. This kind of noise exposure can NEGATIVELY impact your stroke recov

“Being isolated doesn’t mean you have to be alone.” Feeling isolated isn’t uncommon for stroke survivors. It’s not that you really want to be alone. But dealing with things like aphasia, physical challenges, and being tired all the time can make you choose to pull away. Sometimes it just feels easier to be alone. I’ve felt that way many times. You want to think, breathe, and relax. But isolating yourself isn’t healthy, especially in the long run. Think about joining a local s

“Being healthy isn’t just about eating that way. Having a healthy outlook on life counts too.” When you hear the word healthy, it can make you want to be anything but. That’s not an option, especially after you’ve had a stroke. Face it, your health wasn’t that great before it, or you wouldn’t have had one. Over half of all strokes are caused by high blood pressure/hypertension. The sad thing? Many people don’t even know if they have it or are at risk. So they go about their

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” - Theodore Roosevelt Your mindset is how you view yourself and the world. After a stroke, many survivors are not the “same” person they were before. You may be less social, have less confidence, and find it harder to stay positive. Up to 57% of stroke survivors experience personality changes, including apathy, anger, depression, and grief. How can you keep your mindset focused on your recovery and moving forward? Be patient with y

Seven years ago today, I had a stroke that changed my life forever. I don't look at the world the same way; I don't feel the same, and in my eyes, I look a little different somehow. Almost dying changes you. Sitting here in the room where it happened that morning, looking at the same monitor, typing this post, I'm reminded of how much we take for granted. And how fragile life is. For the 33 months immediately following my stroke, I was a full-time caregiver to my Dad, ran a

“Your choices can change your life. Choose wisely.” – Peggy Paarmann We make around 30,000 choices a day. About 2,000 an hour. That isn’t a typo. Every choice we make defines us and who we are. Small ones, like what to eat for breakfast, or big ones like changing jobs or buying a car. When you make thoughtful choices, the outcome is usually positive. Snap decisions can take it in the opposite direction, and not in a good way. Up to 60% of survivors experience poor concentra

“Expect the unexpected. You’ll never be disappointed.” Every day something happens to me that I don’t expect. From the message on my Starbucks cup to the compliment I received today on the shirt I was wearing. My shirt says, “BE KIND.” And the woman behind me in line at the grocery store said that the whole world needs to wear them. I couldn’t agree more. Strokes are unexpected. Unless you get a warning like I did about having AFIB and ignore it. Then, I should have expected

“Ignoring your health is like not stopping for a red light. It can get you killed.” -P. Paarmann Tissue Plasminogen Activator (tPA) gave me a second chance at life. I wouldn’t be writing this without it. In fact, I highly doubt I’d be here at all. It was specifically developed for people who’ve had ischemic strokes. There are specific criteria, and when it’s given within a certain window of time, it will dissolve the clots that caused the stroke. I got my shot with ten minute

"Always remember, your focus determines your reality." – George Lucas Focus. Not as easy to do sometimes after a stroke. You may find it easier to get distracted, harder to pay attention, and tougher to focus. All of this is part of cognitive fatigue, which is common after a stroke. I discovered that it was harder to focus on driving with the radio on right after my stroke. Strange as it sounds, it made me nervous for some reason. So, I turned it off. I learned that I got d

“Not being able to say what you mean isn’t the same as not having anything to say.”- P.Paarmann After a stroke, sometimes saying what you mean isn’t easy. It’s not on purpose. Or because you aren’t trying. It’s Aphasia. It affects millions of people and is commonly the result of a stroke. The ICU Nurses told me it could happen. I might mix up words, forget some, and have some challenges communicating like I had been able to before. It happened. I couldn't remember a word.

I get asked about the title all the time. People try to figure it out, and when they can’t, they ask me what in the world it means. Here’s my egg metaphor: So, even if life looks perfect, like a sunny-side-up egg, in an instant, the yolk can break and scramble the egg. Make sense? And that’s what inspired the egg image on the cover. Before my stroke, I was settling into life in my hometown after many years. I was renovating my family home, and I thought I knew where I was hea