Hear Phat’s Story

Written by Phat Cao, Reconnect Alumni. Project led by Andrew Davie

It was June 21st, 2021 when I was rushed to the ER for stroke symptoms.  I had vertigo, vision problems, and was throwing up.  None of us knew what was happening since I was only 36, had no preexisting conditions or family history of a stroke, and was perfectly healthy.  As soon as I got to the hospital, the doctors immediately knew I was having a hemorrhagic stroke (caused by bleeding), which is less common but carries a higher mortality rate, and I was rushed into surgery.

It all started on a Sunday evening when I finished a light workout at the gym. I felt soreness in the neck area and decided to do some stretching. As I began to stretch, I suddenly felt a pop, and my heart dropped. An overwhelming dizziness took over, and I lost feeling on my left side for a moment. Thoughts began to flood my mind. One of the first thoughts I had was, “Am I really going to have them call 911 and get taken out of the gym on a stretcher?” I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down and decided to wait to see if I would feel better. After about 10 minutes, I felt comfortable enough to drive home. During that time, there was a lot going on, which included closing on my first house, and I did not want to delay anything. I proceeded to finish my Sunday evening, and surprisingly, things went back to normal.

On Monday morning when I got to work, I immediately approached my coworker.  He was always working out at the gym and hoped he would give me more clarity.  Could it be a stroke?  Strokes only happen to older people, so that couldn’t have been the case, or so we thought.  Other than a little headache that went away after an aspirin, I decided to ignore what had happened and focus on moving into my first house on Friday.  The week wasn't any different than any other week, but little did I know there was a slow bleed happening.

It was the official first night at the new house, and my girlfriend, Anna, and I ordered food from one of our favorite restaurants.  I am not clear how the symptoms started, but I remember waking up with nausea and suddenly having to throw up. We thought it was food poisoning, and usually rest would make it better.  As the night went on, I could not keep anything down, and the symptoms got worse.  It got to the point where I could not walk and was crawling on the ground, but I kept it to myself.  Even though I told Anna not to mention anything, I am grateful she went with her gut feeling and called the ambulance.  Once they determined I was having a stroke, they immediately took me straight to the Emergency Room.

If having a hemorrhagic stroke and waiting so long wasn’t bad enough, there were complications after the surgery.  My brain began to swell up, and there was internal bleeding.  The doctors and my family had to make a sudden decision to do a second surgery to remove part of my brain and allow room for the swelling.  It added more risks, as well as disabilities, but it would increase my chances of surviving.  Fortunately, it was successful, but upon waking up, I was partially paralyzed, could not talk, eat, walk, etc.  No one thought I would be able to recover, and I could see the disappointment in their eyes.  Also, statistics were not promising.

After about 2 months of inpatient and outpatient rehab, I was finally released from the hospital to go home.  It was an exciting time, but little did I know that was only the start of my recovery journey.

Hear Aidee’s Story

Written by Aidee Becerra, Reconnect Alumni. Project led by Andrew Davie, Reconnect leader.

On Sunday, January 27, 2024, I started feeling dizzy. I initially thought it was vertigo symptoms. The dizziness came and went throughout Sunday. I felt better, then I would feel dizzy again. I also felt really tired.  

I was out of town that weekend, so when I was at the airport, ready to fly back home, I felt so dizzy that I held on to my husband because I could not walk unassisted. When we landed in Ontario, CA, I ran to the restroom; I threw up for the first time. Then we drove home, which was another 30 minutes, and when I arrived at home, I threw up again. At that point, I thought I had food poisoning, or I got a 24-hour bug. I went to sleep, and I woke up around 2 am with an urge to urinate. When I was on the toilet, I started throwing up again and lost motor control.  At that point we knew it was more serious than vertigo, food poisoning, or a stomach bug.

My husband had one of our daughters call emergency services. The paramedics came, and they checked me out. My husband told them we had spent a weekend wine tasting. Unfortunately, the paramedics jumped to conclusions and thought I was drunk.  They transported me to the hospital, and on the way there I threw up again. I heard the paramedics talking that they thought I was drunk. They did give me medication to help me stop throwing up.

When I arrived at the hospital, I'm confident they told the nurses they thought I was drunk because I was left in a hallway for 2-3 hours, unattended, without seeing my family. At this point, it was already Monday, January 28, 2024. After a few hours of being there, I had to urinate again.  I got up and walked to the restroom, accompanied by a male nurse. When he saw that I had bad motor control, he asked me what was wrong. I told him I didn't know I was at the hospital because I was throwing up and had lost motor control. He immediately asked me to smile and saw that I had a drooping smile. He pointed at me and said You are suffering from a stroke.

After I went to the restroom, they immediately gave me a room and finally let my family back to see me. They started doing scans to confirm the stroke. The diagnosis was that I was having a hemorrhagic stroke that was massive and was affecting both sides of my cerebellum. My family was updated on my diagnosis and was informed that they would not be feeding me because I might need an emergency craniotomy, which is basically a cut to your skull to release pressure.

Within the first couple of days, family and friends were stopping by the hospital to check on my family and say their goodbyes to me. I vaguely remember seeing some of my family; they had pity on their faces and were sad.

I didn't eat for 5 days because they thought I might need the surgery. At my family's request, the hospital placed a feeding tube in me. Before the feeding tube was placed in me, I was getting really weak. My husband remembers lifting my arm, and it would fall straight down because I was so weak.  This proves that it is important to advocate for your family when they can't advocate for themselves. The day I was scheduled for surgery, the pressure in my brain went down, and luckily I didn't need the surgery. They kept me on the feeding tube because my body forgot how to swallow. When I finally passed a swallow test, two weeks later, they removed it. This is when the hard work began.

The therapist started teaching me how to eat and walk. I started with soft foods like jello and soups. I started walking with a walker; first, I would walk to the door, then down the hallway. After a few days of rehab, like a week, I was discharged to a live-in rehabilitation center.

At the rehabilitation center, I was still wearing a diaper, so they would come and change it and wake me at 7am so that I could start therapy. The therapies there were more intense. I would spend 2-3 hours per day on occupational, physical, and speech therapy.  They taught me how to talk, eat, walk, shower, and clean myself after bowel movements. I was just reminded of the first time I put on my shoes and tied my shoelaces; it was a big accomplishment. I was so proud of myself.  It was embarrassing when I had bowel movements; the nurses or my husband had to wipe me. So pick your spouse wisely. Anyways, I had to learn to wipe myself, and I was in a hurry.

I was supposed to be in the live-in rehabilitation center for 3 weeks, but after 2 weeks I forced my family to take me home. At this point, I still thought I was going to pass away, so I wanted to be home when it happened. When I was forcefully discharged, I was still in a wheelchair for most of the day and would only use a walker to walk short distances, like going to the restroom. I was also using a shower chair because I have to sit while I shower to avoid falls.  I was discharged with no support tools, no wheelchair, no shower chair, and no walker. The rehabilitation center said my insurance had not approved those items yet. What? How am I supposed to move around and be safe?

I'm blessed that we have a friend who works in the medical field, and he sold us a walker and a shower chair at a fair price. He also lent us a wheelchair because he figured that would be temporary. 4 weeks after I was discharged from the rehabilitation center, my insurance finally called me, and they approved the walker, shower chair, and wheelchair. It was too late by then; I had already gotten those items. Again, advocating is very important. I'm sure if we had kept calling my insurance, they would have approved them sooner.

Cognitive Fatigue After Brain Injury: Signs, Symptoms, and Practical Strategies

Do you feel exhausted after even small tasks? You might wake up feeling okay, but after a short conversation or a simple task, you feel completely drained.

If you’re living with a brain injury or stroke, this is not just “being tired.” This is cognitive fatigue, one of the most common and frustrating parts of recovery. If you’ve been feeling this way, you’re not alone. And there are ways to understand and manage it.

What is Cognitive Fatigue?
Cognitive fatigue is mental exhaustion that happens when your brain is working harder. After a brain injury, even everyday tasks—thinking, focusing, decision-making—require much more effort. It’s different from regular tiredness because rest doesn’t always fully restore your energy, and it often worsens with mental activity.

Why Does Cognitive Fatigue Happen After Brain Injury?
Your brain is healing, and everyday tasks now need more conscious effort. Your mental energy—your “battery”—drains faster, and overstimulation can occur easily. This is a real part of recovery, not a lack of motivation.

Common Signs of Cognitive Fatigue
You might notice: difficulty focusing, feeling overwhelmed by small decisions, slower thinking, irritability, or feeling foggy. These can build up during the day, especially in the afternoon.

Practical Strategies to Manage Cognitive Fatigue

1. Pace Your Energy: Spread tasks out. Break them into smaller steps and rest between them.

2. Schedule Rest: Plan breaks before you feel exhausted. Even 5 minutes can help.

3. Reduce Cognitive Load: Keep things simple. Use lists, reminders, and avoid multitasking.

4. Mind Your Environment: Reduce noise, take breaks from screens, and keep a calm space.

5. Prioritize: Focus on the top 1–3 tasks each day—don’t overload yourself.

6. Listen to Early Signs: Notice when you feel off, and pause before fatigue fully hits.

7. Support Your Nervous System: Use deep breathing, gentle movement, and mindfulness to stay balanced.

Practices like deep breathing, mindfulness, gentle movement, and adequate sleep can help regulate and support recovery.

Recovery is not meant to be navigated alone.

If you’re looking for guidance, support, and community after stroke or brain injury, the Reconnect program was created to help individuals rebuild confidence, reconnect with identity, and feel less isolated throughout the recovery journey.

With support,

Kerri Potthoff, MS, CCC-SLP, CBIS

Founder of Brain healing Collective

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