TANDET DRIVER SAVES HIS OWN LIFE 

Let’s start with the good news. Because Nick, one of our Drivers, recognized he was having a stroke while on the road, he immediately called 911 for help. Because of his quick action, he had a very quick recovery and has returned to work.

Nick was kind enough to share his story and has some valuable advice for all of us. Please read on to learn more about Nick’s experience and the important advice he shares.

I connected with Nick on December 21, 2021, as he was at work on the way to Timiskaming, Ontario. He was stopped in North Bay. This was the same route he was taking when he had the stroke just a few months ago.

Can you tell me what happened?

Nick shared that he was at work, driving the route up to Timiskaming when he felt something was wrong. He quickly found a safe place to pull over and called 911 right away.

The early signals that something was wrong included a drooping mouth and his right eye was closing somewhat. Later he started to experience slurred speech.

The ambulance arrived and he started to get emergency care immediately on site. At first, he couldn’t swallow without choking but within one day he had relearned how to swallow. Within 24 hours he was doing quite well.

Nick had a blockage but no bleeding. Thankfully medication has worked to clear the blockage.

While recovering, remaining calm was important in order to keep his blood pressure under control. Stress, anxiety and worry affect one’s blood pressure and while it is very important to manage stress it isn’t always easy to do. For Nick, like so many of us, it’s a work in progress.

How are you doing now?

Nick shared that he is doing good now and is back at work. Although he is doing very well, he added that a 100% recovery is not the reality for stroke survivors. He will always need to manage the risk factors.

What would you like people to know?

Look after your Blood Pressure (BP) so you don’t have a stroke to begin with! Nick recommends that people keep an eye on their BP and take care of higher BP, so it doesn’t get worse.

Nick also recommends people watch what they eat. Nick had already made diet changes by reducing his salt intake, but that alone wasn’t enough to lower his BP. Regular BP checks, using a home BP monitor has been helpful during and after his recovery.

Specifically for drivers, Nick was quick to say,

· Know and recognize the early warning signs of strokes and heart    attacks.

· If on the road, pull over quickly when it’s safe to do so, and

· Call 911 immediately. Don’t delay-the faster the call is made the      better it is and the more likely it is to have a full recovery.

Find good ways to manage your stress, anxiety and worries. It isn’t always easy to manage stress and worries but it is crucial to keep trying to find ways to do so.

(Note-if stress, anxiety and worry are affecting you please contact a medical practitioner and see the resource links on this website to get more information about services and resources where you can get help and support.)

Nick stressed the importance of recognizing the warning signs. Know them and call 911 fast if you have any of the signs. We may think it will pass or should wait to see if it gets worse before taking any action, but this is exactly what NOT to do. Getting medical care quickly was one of the reasons Nick was able to recover quickly and fully.

The warning signs are captured in the acronym FAST:

Face is Drooping

Arms-Can you raise both?

Speech is slurred or jumbled

Time to call 911 immediately

We are grateful that Nick took the time to connect with us and share his story. His quick thinking and brave actions saved his life, and his advice could save someone else’s too. Please take heed and take the preventative actions Nick recommends.

Read on to learn more about Stroke and Heart Health. Please also check out the resource links to get more information.

The good news is that nearly 80% of premature heart and stroke disease can be prevented. It just takes maintaining some habits like being active, eating healthily and being smoke-free. Knowing the risk factors and taking steps to lower your controllable risks are important factors in preventing heart disease and stroke. Remember Nick’s advice to keep ahead of stress and worries so they don’t contribute to higher blood pressure.   

The Heart and Stoke Foundation of Canada has a bevy of information on their website.  

https://www.heartandstroke.ca/   Here are some tips to help you maintain good heart health. 

Awareness is important. Know your risk factors, those that you can’t control and those that you can. The most important thing you can do is to commit to a heart healthy lifestyle.  

What does a heart healthy lifestyle look like? 

• Activity- Get moving! 30 mins/day is a good goal. If this is new to you begin by getting about 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity per week, in bouts of 10 minutes or more. It is always best to consult with a medical practitioner to help you build a plan that works for you.  
• Healthy Eating – choose a balanced diet, limiting your intake of processed foods. See the healthy lifestyles pages on this site for more information about balanced diets. 
• The Dash Diet is proven to reduce blood pressure. You may have heard of the low sodium dash diet, but did you know there are other options too? Check out heartandstroke.ca for more information. 
• Waist Weight- we have all heard how maintaining a healthy weight contributes to overall good health, but did you know that excess waist weight correlates with higher blood pressure and heart disease? Heartandstroke.ca reports that men are at an elevated risk if their waist is more than 37 inches and for women the risk increases when the waist is more than 31.5 inches.  
• No Smoking- smoking contributes to the build-up of plaque in the arteries, increases the risk of blood clots and makes the heart work harder because smoking reduces the oxygen in the blood. 
• Low Risk Drinking Guidelines-It is recommended that women drink no more that 2 standard drinks per day and no more that 10 standard drinks in a week. The guidelines for men are no more that 3 standard drinks per day and no more that 15 per week. What is a standard drink? Refer to the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (ccsa) to learn this and more about the guidelines for women and men. 
• Manage Stress- People with high levels of stress or prolonged stress have higher cholesterol and/or blood pressure and may be more prone to narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis), a stroke risk factor. Managing stress is critical. Get to know what your stressors are and take action to control these factors. Refer to heartandstroke.ca for more information about coping with stress.  

CPR 

You could save a life by knowing what to do in a medical emergency. The first thing to do is call 9-1-1. In the vital minutes that pass before emergency services arrive there is more you can do. Consider taking CPR training from a reputable organization so you are trained to intervene. If you live in a rural area, being trained in CPR is critical.