Learning How To Talk Again: Charles Shares his Inspiring Story
Our inspiring user, Charles, shares his Medisafe story:
In July 2014, I was having two back surgeries to fuse two vertebrae in my spine. I took a medical leave and planned on being back at work within three weeks. I would not be home for seven months, four of which I have no memory of.
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A third back surgery had to be performed. That’s when things took a turn for the worst. I developed pneumonia that was so bad that they put me on a ventilator. When you’re on a ventilator, you’re at risk for blood clots. So they started heparin therapy. Heparin is a blood thinner unless you’re one of the .04% of people that are highly allergic to it. Then it does the opposite. It rapidly clots your blood. In my case, it caused a massive hemorrhagic stroke. During this time, my wife said I had dozens of seizures. I had never had a seizure before. It was a cascading series of really bad events. By the time I got discharged from the hospital, I was on a feeding tube and lost 50 pounds.
I was at my first rehab for five weeks. I had to learn how to walk, talk, and take care of myself. That’s when I could say I was conscious of my surroundings. I graduated from my wheelchair to a walker, and became aware that I had seven children and two foster children.
#Inspiring: After dozens of seizures, Charles had to learn how to walk & talk all over again
My next stop was Mentis Neuro-Rehab in Stow Ohio. I was there for five months. That is the place where I made so much progress. And where my occupational therapist and I researched medication apps and selected Medisafe. Before my stroke, I was on six medications..nothing critical. Now, I am on blood thinner, 3 antiseizure medications, and some pain medication. My speech therapist and my occupational therapist helped me configure Medisafe and I was on my way. The challenge for me is one of memory: my short-term memory was significantly impacted, so Medisafe is not an option for me- It’s a necessity. When I left Mentis Neuro- Rehab everybody there was using it. It gave me great satisfaction to hear all the pill reminders going off.
«#Medisafe is not an option for me- It’s a #necessity»
Now that I am back at home I have been hospitalized twice. One time, with more seizures. When the doctors asked me how I knew I was taking my medication, I showed them Medisafe. They were impressed and wrote the name of the application down.
Although all the complications, I am doing better today, and am thankful for the support of my family and the care teams that have helped me recover.