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Photos by Layla Garms YoungStroke Founder Amy Edmunds speaks. Victim: Stroke can strike at any age BY LAYLA GARMS THE CHRONICLE Amy Edmunds was the picture of health when she had a stroke at age 43. She maintained a healthy diet and weight, exercised regularly and fre quently ran in 5ks. To this day, 10 years after the stroke, Edmunds says her doctors are baffled and still can't point to what may have caused the stoke. "1 think God just want ed to give me an assign ment." stated Edmunds, a full time lecturer at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina and founder and executive director of YoungStroke, Inc. "He just wanted to give me some thing to talk about." And talk about it she has. Edmunds has become a passionate advocate for young stroke awareness. Those who suffer a stroke ac ?? ,,A^A w.iuit u.? ait uiviuutu in youth stroke statistics. Edmunds, speaking at a Young Stroke Awareness Conference at Winston Salem State University last Thursday, said stroke is affecting more and more younger Americans. " W e thought. and still do think, that stroke is an affliction of old age. Stroke can happen at any age - that's one of the messages uiai yuu iiccu IU take back to your commu nities," said Edmunds, whose organization pre sented the conference, along with WSSU's Center of Excellence for the Elimination of Health Disparities (CEEHD). "(With) people who have been admitted to the hospitals for stroke, we've had an increase in people from the ages of 15-44," reported CEEHD Executive Director Dr. Sylvia Flack. "Stroke in Forsyth County is one of the big reasons that we have a lot of young people on the disabled list." Though she has trav eled nationally and interna tionally to speak about the importance of researching and understanding young stroke, the conference at WSSU was a first for Edmunds. "Winston-Salem State is the first historically black university that I've been able to make this presenta tion to," she revealed. "And certainly the message couldn't be more relevant to this particular college audience, because minori ties are disproportionately impacted, and of course that goes for young stroke survivors as well." One in five strokes in America strikes people between the ages of 20 and 55, Edmunds revealed, and that number is on the rise. Between 1995 and 2008, the number of Americans ages 15 to 44 hospitalized for stroke rose by more than one-third, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. High Point resident Penny Castro said she never imagined that at 59 she might be at risk for stroke, but the thunderclap headache that signaled the onset of a stroke just after finishing her shift at CenterPoint Human Services in April was a wake-up call. Castro ? who had received a clean bill of health from her doctor just before the stroke - said that as a relatively young woman, she was in the dis tinct minority at the Novant Health Stroke and Neurosciences Center. where she spent seven days recovering from her ordeal. "When I was at the stroke clin ic, doctors and nurses frequently commented, 'You're awfully young for this to happen,'" said Castro, who has since changed her diet and dropped 30 pounds in hopes of reducing her stroke risk. Despite the prevalence of occurrences among younger generations, little has been done to address the unique challenges young stroke survivors face. Many young stroke victims are still rearing families and working, yet most post-stroke programs aren't geared to helping them to get back into the workplace or grappling with the unique social and psychological issues they face as stroke survivors, Edmund said. "We still want to date; we still want to be intimate; we still want to have a social life, and that's not always the case for our geriatric counterparts," she noted. "...Your self image changes when you have had a stroke at a young age. I have gone from being superwoman to feeling very vulnerable." Former WSSU Professor Marilyn Roseboro, 62, said her stroke in 2012 also took her by surprise. Roseboro, whose late mother also suf fered a stroke before the age of 63, said she had no idea that stroke among younger people was an issue until she met sur vivors who were 20 and even 30 years her junior. "It really is something of a shock." confessed the WSSU alumna. "I've run into people in that age bracket and they've had devastating strokes and that really makes me scared for them." Castro While a healthy diet and active lifestyle didn't prevent her from having a stroke, it did prevent her from suffering far more dramatic effects, Edmunds said. "1 took a healthy body into my stroke experience and my neurologist says that that, in and of itself, is 99.9 percent of why my recovery has been as phe nomenal as it is," declared Edmunds, who suffered multiple embolisms (clots) and says her CAT scan "looked like someone had taken a pepper grinder to my brain." "I did not have any other health issues, and to this day. I have not had a reoccurrence." She urges everyone to learn stroke risk factors - which include abdominal obesity, hypertension, smoking, an unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. "This is not something that other people are imposing upon us - we have a choice," she said. "Make a good choice." For more information about Young Stroke, Inc., visit http.Hyoungstroke x>rg. Sylvia Flack addresses conference attendees. Fund drive launched for housing project for homeless, poor CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT The public phase of The Commons' capital campaign kicked off Wednesday, Oct. 30. An integrated supportive housing community to help prevent homelessness in the community. The Commons will be located at 3983 HSA Circle (on the comer of Hwy 158 and Old Greensboro Road). lhe answer to homelessness is housing, and for members of our community with special chal lenges, a support ive housing envi ronment such as The Commons can help them avoid becoming homeless, and instead develop the skills and tal ents to become thriving members of our communi ty," said Mayor Allen Joines. The Commons will be a learning campus, designed to pro- 1 vide housing and J a supportive envi C?> of W S Pholo Campaign chair Chris Henson speaks at last week's kick-off. ronment for at-risk families, youth aging out of foster care, and young adults on the autism spectrum. The North Carolina Housing Foundation Inc. (NCHF) will own. manage and maintain The Commons. The Commons will deliver an integrated program ? including housing, food and supportive services ? something unique in Forsyth County and at the forefront of homeless program best practices. The program is consistent with the housing first strategy proven effective throughout the United States and supported by Winston-Salem/Forsyth County's Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. The campaign is being chaired by Chris Henson, chief operating officer of BB&T. "Homelessness is just misunderstood," said Henson. "These are people who want to do better and who - with a helping hand - can do better." L These days, people carnal ? stop talking about healti^HM re can'tetop listenin|*<'^H It's simple, you know people better when you spend time together. That's why our staff goes beyond today's standards and spends more time with you. More time starting conversations about your healthcare. More time listening to your questions and concerns. That way you're receiving the most attention and best treatment possible. It's that simple. NB MOVANT _ B HEALTH ' <
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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