How I found my way back after a stroke

• Acknowledgements
• Doctors & Nurses
• SHIU (State Head Injury Unit)
• Rehabilitation Professionals
• Stroke Foundation
• Carers
• Family and friends of a Stroke Victim
• HOPE (Helping Other People Endure)

This is a story about

• Mental health
• Encouragement
• Depression
• Hard luck
• Good luck
• Divorce
• Humour
• Hope
• Or just a bloody good life story

Preface

If a bridge collapsed in your town and it was peak hour traffic, a few cars would end up in the water and lives would
be lost. Eventually cars would back up on either side, but the people would still want to go home. They would find another
route. It wouldn’t be the fastest way home but they would still get there. So too with a stroke victim! In some cases part
of the brain has collapsed but the brain has these amazing qualities to find other pathways to navigate the way home.

So this is my story about how a stroke victim’s brain can find a way home. — Ray Bekeris

In Carnarvon, on January 15th 2016, in Western Australia, at aged sixty, I was driving home from work feeling as usual. It was a Friday night; I was looking forward to sitting on my veranda and relaxing.

Suddenly I noticed my ute started to veer towards the right-hand side of the road. Fortunately, there were no cars
or trucks coming along the Northwest Coast Highway. This is a busy highway as it services all the traffic going from
Perth to Kununurra. My first thoughts were that I had a flat tyre and, being only one kilometre from home, I decided to
continue.

I soon realised, it wasn’t the tyre that was flat but the right-hand side of me!

I corrected the best I could, to the left. I still knew that I had a hill to navigate then two corners to reach my driveway, which was off the highway in a small Carnarvon suburb. The righthand side of my body was limp and leaning, so I tried to sit upright. I was no longer driving the car but just aiming it in the general direction of my house. I was now at the base of the hill and could see my house but getting there seemed like a long journey. As it was a manual car, I had to change gears, ride the clutch, operate the accelerator and steer all together.

I remember my left good foot was getting tangled up with my bad right foot just as my arms were entangling. I realised that my right eye was getting blurry, and the car was now going from side to side. My mind felt as though it was slowly emptying, and my only thought was to get home, though even the thought of that was disappearing. Luckily, I was off the main road and going up a side street. Why I didn’t stop I will never know!

Finally, I reached my garage. The ute stalled and it stopped too close to the door. Somehow my brain sensed danger! I knew that the car could roll down the hill and into another house. My good foot stayed hard on the brake. I was trying to process the danger. I looked at the hand brake and with my good arm I applied it and heard the clicks. My good arm also made sure the car was in gear. I felt that the danger of the car rolling down the hill was now over. My ute was too close to the door. I could not get out! It seemed too hard to restart the ute, so I dragged myself over to the passenger side. As it was a Friday, I had grabbed a carton of beer and it was in the way on the passenger side. I needed to hurdle it, but I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to get out of the car let alone carry the beer and so I tumbled out onto the cement. I tried to walk but my leg and arm wouldn’t work. I struggled towards the stairs. My thoughts were that if I could make it up, I could have a lie down and would feel better. The problem was, I couldn’t climb the stairs with only one leg!

I now realised I had a problem, but I didn’t know what it was. It was like my thinking was missing and my mind was scrambled. I fumbled for my phone but none of it made sense, neither the letters nor the numbers. I just pushed buttons. I guess I must have quick dialled my wife even though I was thinking of my daughter. I must have mumbled something into the phone because my wife told me to stop mucking around. The next thing there were people everywhere, my wife, ambulance, police and even my neighbour.

My mind went blank!

(to be continued …)