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Sharon F.  Sharon Caregiver & Family I lost my dad's parents to stroke, and my mom's dad to stroke. It runs in the family. Two years ago both my parents had open heart surgery. In August, Mom had a 5-way bypass, and as she recovered and returned home, Dad went in for a 4-way bypass. In the meantime, I had a screening which showed 90+% blockage in my carotid arteries. To help prevent a stroke, I quit smoking December 10, 2007. My doctor monitors my hypertension and high cholesterol. It was over 200, and now is 159. I have my carotids checked every 6 months, and they have been stable at 60-70% on the left and 20-30% on the right. My recent echocardiogram was normal, and carotids unchanged. I also have a disrupted circadian rythym that changes my metabolism and wake/sleep cycle, which is a challenge because I work the night shift nursing, from 7 PM to 7 AM. It seems like I have been trying to lose weight my entire life, but it is a lifelong quest to maintain good heart health to prevent stroke. My diet contains minimal red meat, plenty of fruits and vegetables and very minimal pasta and white breads. My biggest goal for this and next year is to get the 216 pounds down to 175 and to increase my acitivity. I am a constant work in progress. » Learn more about the connection between atherosclerosis and cholesterol to stroke. |
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