Would you know the signs of a stroke? Read one survivor's story

It started like any other weekday for a family with kids. On Feb. 11, Sandra Barnes woke up at 6:30 a.m. - about an hour before the early-morning rush to school.  

But when Barnes, 50, tried to get out of bed, she lost her balance and fell.  

“My husband assumed it was an episode of Vertigo,” she recalled recently. “Why don’t you climb back into bed, he said, and I’ll get the kids ready for school." 

She couldn’t sit up. Barnes is one of the lucky ones. According to statistics, someone in the U.S. has a stroke every 40 seconds.

“My right side gave out on me,” she remembered. “My husband helped me off the floor, I got back in bed and went back to sleep.”

Barnes didn’t take the fall seriously until she woke up about 30 minutes later. 

“I was looking at emails and text messages trying to respond, and I could not type,” she said. 

Her husband works from home and noticed that her speech was also slightly slurred. 

Moments later they drove to the emergency room at Brooke Army Medical Center. A CT scan showed Barnes was having a stroke caused by a blood vessel blockage. She was transferred to University Hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery. 

“It was shocking. I could understand everything everybody was saying, but I couldn't communicate back. The stroke hit in the area that affects speech and cognitive language,” she said. “I could speak, but it sounded like a foreign language.”

May is stroke awareness month and Justin Mascitelli, MD, a neurosurgeon at UT Health San Antonio, reminds us to watch for the early signs. 

“I’m very fortunate and thankful for Dr. Mascitelli, who used every tool in the box to remove the block,” she said. “I was able to start speaking the next day. I called to tell my kids I loved them because I didn’t see them at all on Friday. Then, all of a sudden, I had this stroke and surgery. I could barely get the words out: I love you.”  

About seven in one million Americans under age 50 die annually from strokes caused by a blocked blood vessel, Dr. Mascitelli said adding that warning signs of a stroke follow the acronym “BE FAST.”

Balance loss, eyes that are blurry, face drooping, arm weakness and speech difficulty are signs to immediately call 911. Don’t wait.

“Any neurological deficit can be the first sign a stroke is occurring and can include weakness, numbness, speech or vision difficulty as well as severe headache and decreased level of consciousness,” he said. “Occasionally patients will have a brief, temporary neurological deficit, which can be a warning sign that a permanent stroke is coming soon.”

He adds: “Unlike heart attacks, where patients can tell they are suffering a problem, sometimes patients don’t realize they are having a stroke and only family or friends can identify the situation,” Mascitelli said. “If you or your family have any signs of stroke it is of utmost importance to call 911 as soon as possible to receive medical care as many of the stroke treatments are time dependent.” 

Dr. Mascitelli reminds us it’s important to also know the risk factors, which include hypertension, diabetes, and high cholesterol as well as healthy habits such as not smoking and eating well. 

It’s been three months since the stroke. Today, Barnes is planning her son’s high school graduation and she’s looking forward to celebrating her daughter’s 16th birthday with family on an upcoming cruise. 

“You don’t typically think of a stroke happening at 50 years old. I’m very fortunate,” Barnes said. “I’m back to living my normal life.” 

To learn more about strokes or to schedule an appointment, call 210-450-9060 or visit UTHealthCare.org.