I wake up everyday in a positive state of mind, I always have. My wife of 40 years doesn't understand how i do it but nonetheless its who I am.
In October of 2018 I was on the road for work when the first symptoms occurred, light headedness and my right side carotid artery throbbing I sat down and it went away a few minutes later so I ignored it. The next morning I went to the jobsite to meet with my crew and before I saw anyone the symptoms returned but with dizziness and this is what scared me. After taking an aspirin I had one of my guys take meet to a local Hospital where they performed a CT scan. A few hours later I was informed of the blockage in my brain. I was 59 at the time and for the first time in my life concerned about mortality. I didn't tell the physician but I flew home the next day because my family was in Arizona and if something was going to happen I wanted to be with them. I went to work the next day and sat down with the two owners I work for and they jumped in immediately to help me and I will always be grateful to them for being by my side.
Two days later the symptoms returned and again I found myself in the emergency room. Another scan, am MRI and several hours later I'm being informed of the several mini-strokes that have occurred two I was aware of and the rest completely shocked me. I was completely unaware there were no symptoms. I was released that day with prescriptions and a plan yet still thinking it was only a matter of time before the big one occurred. I googled that night and confirmed it a big mistake. I was more frightened yet concerned about how I was going to prepare my family for what could eventually occur. I felt like time was running out.
I met with my neurologist two weeks later and after informing him of my new found medical profession he realized I had been Googling and immediately asked me to stop. He was right, its of no benefit to us we aren't the physicians they are. From that point on I became the model patient following their direction and am on the positive road to recovery.
As I write this article I am sitting in a lawn chair alongside my wife of 40 years and my oldest daughter watching my youngest daughter coaching special needs children in a game of soccer. The lights have just come on and its an awsome sunset. Life doesn't get better than this!