The damn Pandemic had me stir-crazy! I pulled out my sewing machine and made hundreds of masks for friends and family. I developed a routine…Wake up. Sew for a while. Workout at the track. Sew for a while. Workout again(usually coaching via zoom). Have some cocktails. Go to bed. Do it all again.
I fell one day at the track(photo below)…Nothing major at all. I was sore more from sewing than from the fall. Looking down at those masks got my neck pretty stiff.
I awoke one morning to severe neck pain. I couldn’t turn my head. My neck was locked in place…
It was painful, however, the way in which I lived my life made it only a minor inconvenience. I suffer from chronic neck and back pain that waxes and wanes. I never fully let anything interfere with my fitness or activity level. I’m constantly in motion. I always did(and still do!) find ways to push beyond or around the pain.
Days later, I was feeling ok. Went to the track for my morning workout. I was at the grocery store and was going to head out for a jog. While in line to pay for my items, I turned my head to pop my neck and suddenly got spots in my vision and almost passed out. I was more confused than concerned. I decided I ought to skip the run and rest a while…
In hindsight, this was likely my first and smallest stroke.
People often question how one doesn’t know they are having a medical emergency. Would you think you were having a stroke? I made so many deductions from that dizzy-spell at the store: My mask was limiting my oxygen; I had a pinched nerve in my neck; i was just dehydrated.
The routine continued, and I didn’t tell anyone about the episode at that point.
