I first started having some symptoms about a week prior with severe dizziness and sudden loss of balance on the 20th of May, 2022. Since the average temperature then was in the mid 30s, I dismissed it as a heatstroke. Big mistake.
On the 26th of May, 2022, I was working as usual and was just finishing up with my last appointment of the day when I realised that my right hand was suddenly weak and messed up my handwriting. Mind you, I was already having dizzy spells the whole day. It was then I realised that it was probably more serious than I thought and prudently decided I was not well enough to drive to the hospital. Instead I called my sister, Jac, and told her I was feeling poorly and needed her help to be brought to the hospital.
That was how I ended up at the Accidents & Emergency Department of Kuala Lumpur Hospital, a place where I could walk in but only leave 4 days later immobile on a wheelchair.
At the back of my mind, I kinda knew the warning signs of a stroke:
Balance Difficulty - Check
Eyesight Changes - Check (I was seeing stars)
Face Weakness - Only apparent a few hours after I was warded
Arm Weakness - Check
Speech Difficulty - Check (I was slurring by the time I reached the hospital)
Time To Call 999 - Did not do that. Got my sister to drive me instead
So please if you have just one of these symptoms, please get help immediately. I ended up developing a full blown left lacunar infarct stroke that left me paralysed on my right side - something that I am still recovering from. I can't help but wonder if things could have ended up differently if I had acted sooner.
For a list of stroke ready hospitals, both public and private, visit My Stroke Hospital, a joint initiative of the Malaysia Stroke Council, the National Stroke Association of Malaysia and the Angels Initiative.
Strokes can be prevented with timely action. Remember to BEFAST.