My web name comes from my friends on the 'Different Strokes' face book they nick named me Bantam Eddie because of the This media as the format for showing the world what its like to be a survivor relying on the Blessings of God, family and for support. I was planning to write a book, however,there are many out there and as I don't wish to make any money out of my story which may prevent some from experiencing Gods Glory and healing powers I have chosen My prayer for you is that you hear the still small voice whispering hope.Īs the title suggests I am a stroke survivor not a stroke victim, this blog is a story of my journey since February 6th 2011 starting with an account of my time in hospital and of my time in Rehab then my on going recovery at home, it is intended toĮncourage both stroke Survivors and Carers alike. You may be reading this as someone for whom the future seems very dark. You may be reading this simply out of interest but In March 2011, during a call from Eddies cousin Marcin in Poland, he told me of an old Polish saying “The last thing I will give up is HOPE”. A journey that normally takes 20 minutes took him 3 hours, but he did it. Stroke recovery is unpredictable and doctors have to work with that and manage peoples expectations but, happily, His got it wrongīecause in 2013, with a team around him, Eddie walked up the last 500 metres of Mam Tor in Derbyshire. He has been on holidays with The Calvert Trust where he is assisted to do many of the activities he did pre -stroke. He can walk a few steps inside despite being However(my favourite word) if you have read the rest of Eddie’s blog you will know that Eddie’s recovery has been nothing short of miraculous. And I said “he wouldn’t want to live like this” and in my head I said “and neither would I.” In the weeks that followed I was in a very dark place and we as a family even considered a trip to Dignitas. A man who loved adventure, camping on the snow line in winter, skiing, canoeing, climbing,Ĭycling, laughing, loving. My thoughts then turned to Eddie, action man. Our tiny home would become a hospital with me as the main carer. I thought of my future caring for someone who was totally paralysed. What went through my head was totally, totally selfish. From all that had already happened I felt drained, unable to make simple decisions like having a shower or whatĬlothes to wear and here was this man asking me to make the hardest decision of my whole life. How do you sit with one of your children beside you and condemn him, the person you love most in the world, to death. My reply was “This is a man who walked up mountains” his consultant reply was “Well he won’t walk up mountains again”. I knew that what he was asking was do we resuscitate or not. On the day we all returned from Dubai I was asked by the Dr what I wanted to happen if Eddie had another Eleven years ago, at the start of March, Eddie was seriously ill, he was completely paralysed exceptįor his eyelids, he could only communicate by blinking and his prognosis was not good.

Its hard to believe that it’s eleven years since Eddie had his stroke.

Brain stem stroke