I can remember those months, after surviving my stroke, as some of hardest, darkest days I have ever experienced in my life. To say the simplest of words cost me an extraordinary amount of effort. I would like to share with you these listening tools that enhanced my recovery, expedited it and made it more pleasurable.

From a stroke survivor’s tool box, written for you.

4 fundamentals to live by during your recovery

Scared because this world has shown me that it is a big, dark creepy place, one where bad things happen to unsuspecting people. I am not saying that this is a rational thought, but it is my fear, one which I try to manage every day.

With all of the mental tennis going on in my head, it strikes me that I have another few lessons to re-relearn.

When I hit my first stroke anniversary in February, I had feelings of elation.

I had made it so far!

Then the weeks passed by and I could feel my steam lessening with each day, trudging up the slippery slope of my recovery. I found it was work that was beneath me, in some ironical way.

As I sit here, I’m celebrating 52 weeks of pain. One solid year of learning everything from how to walk and how to talk. However, this milestone, encapsulates my life’s starting point. It is like everything has been brought, suddenly, to life and I'm celebrating my one year birthday.

You might have never realised what it takes for someone suffering the results of a stroke to ‘fit-in’ with her normal life. Things which I could do automatically pre-stroke can cause a slight moment of panic for me now. Maybe you can identify with some of my stroke-isms… because, let’s face it, sometimes we all have strokey moments.

And other stories which I shouldn’t laugh about, but do.

When it comes down to it, there’s not much funny about the situation. I suffered a stroke after an internal carotid artery dissection.

But, I was one of the lucky ones. Surgery could fix me.

I have to level with you. I have been holding back some secrets.

Although it’s satisfying, in one way, to lead you down the path that I’m doing my best and fighting the good fight, its not in the true spirit of honesty.

The fact is that I have many good days, but they come with a twist. They are laced with the drug of my bad behaviour and then my dimmer switch comes on, full blast.

i am a creator.

Now the hard part began…

I wanted to have my rehabilitation my way. No cookie cutter approach, please!

Come, let me entertain you with a good story that starts with a rather seemingly typical, “normal” female and ends with me cursing at my husband in a sea full of umbrellas, blaming my stroke for “its bad behaviour”.

Let me set the stage for you, shall I?