Greetings Members!
It was exactly seven years ago today, and as I recall the day was very similar to today i.e. nice sunny early “spring” day, that the event that was to significantly impact several lives happened!
For that was the day when Mum had her stroke. The events of the day as at that time are etched in my brain and a fair amount of that has been written about on this forum.
As the anniversary approached I found myself wondering and thinking back about the highs and lows in the time since. On occasions, I even wondered if we would make it to today - “The Seven Year Itch”, but made it we have.
I feel Mum’s story has been truly remarkable and I just don’t know how she has done what she has done and how she is sitting here today, possibly stronger than she has ever been since that horrendous blow. It has been an incredible journey that has brought her here, and looking at her, I feel her journey has some way to go. How far is anyone’s guess, but I expect it will be quite interesting to see where it leads her.
It might seem crazy but we feel this is something we can celebrate. It is a celebration of someone who chose to live when she was given next to no chance to survive and who not only survived but worked hard to get stronger and lead as normal a life as circumstances would allow. She faced many hurdles and she jumped them all. Many were hurdles she should never have had to face, but face them she did as this is the way she has lived her entire life.
I am truly blessed to have inherited her genes and she has done much to try and teach us how to live the best lives we can within our means.
Soon after the stroke and after the MDT (Medical Discharge Team) had given their prognosis, I and my sisters were told to grieve for Mum - the clot buster and subsequent attempt to clear the clot failed and the professionals had no further support or solutions they could offer to improve her condition. But Mum told us and anyone prepared to listen that she wasn’t going anywhere and so I chose not to grieve but to see it as a “rebirth”. Seven years later I have with me my seven year old “new” Mum and my 96 year old Mum, but in reality they are both the one and they same - my Mum.
Being her carer (co-carer) has been quite something. We have been on the journey together and we have experienced the highs and lows, faced the challenges, over come the obstacles and we have tried to provide inspiration to ourselves and to others. Mum has never allowed us to stray from the values she holds dear, do the best you can, do not cry over spilt milk, hold no grudges and there is nothing, but nothing more important than your family.
I guess for me, the most amazing thing about all this is that at no time have I ever felt that Mum sees herself as a stroke survivor. She has never complained, even when she has had to endure extreme pain resulting from conditions the professionals could not diagnose and oddly she has never “looked like” a stroke survivor - I am sorry to use such a controversial phrase but I feel there is no other way I can say it. She has always presented herself as someone who has had something happen to her and that something has impacted the way she lives and does things but it is not something she feels angry about or bears any malice etc. She has accepted it and she has chosen to carry on living the life as best as she can. Even being dependent on others for some of her needs, she is always considerate and patient at the same time as being firm and fair as appropriate.
This has been a massive and steep learning curve for us and with hindsight I can say there are many things that we could and should have done differently but spilt milk … So we use this knowledge and experiences and offer it to anyone who may need it and who may benefit from it. We know that what we have down and how we have done it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but all we can do is put it on the table and in the same way we have made our choices, others can do the same.
When I started this note, I was going to keep it short, but somehow the fingers keep typing the words and I just can’t help myself. My amazing little Mum is seven years a stroke survivor and the I want the world to know!
I take this opportunity on behalf of myself, my sisters and Mum to wish everyone all the best and to say we wish you all as much joy and happiness that life can offer as we feel every time we look at Mum.
For us, today is a day to celebrate life 
Namaste|
Peace and Love
Today is the first day of the rest of your life!
