Talking is something most of us take for granted. Our lips, tongue and cheeks work to form the words our brains tell us we want to say.
The ability to speak is something Kelly Smith will never take for granted again after it was temporarily taken from her following a stroke.
On Feb. 28, 2021, Kelly was attending the funeral of a good friend. Naturally, she was very emotional, but something more was happening.
“I felt like there was hot lava being poured over my head,” Kelly said. “When I went to hug the family, I realized I couldn’t speak.”
Kelly assumed she was just overcome with grief and anxiety and tried to calm herself while the service went on, but nothing worked.
She felt like she was gasping for air, like a toddler trying to self-soothe after a temper tantrum. It never occurred to Kelly, 34 years old at the time, that she was having a stroke.
When the service was over, Kelly went to wait for her mom at the car and realized she’d lost the use of her right arm. She couldn’t use the remote to unlock the car doors. Because she still couldn’t speak, she couldn’t relay this to her mom, who assumed she was still upset from the funeral.
They got in the car and headed to the graveside portion of the service, but they didn’t make it.
On the way, Kelly started to curl up in the passenger seat of the car. Her body began to involuntarily twist, and she was making groaning noises. Her mom pulled over and quickly dialed 9-1-1.
TMH Treats Most Complex Stroke Cases
EMTs arrived and took Kelly to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare (TMH) – North Florida and South Georgia’s only Comprehensive Stroke Center, the highest designation from The Joint Commission recognizing hospitals with the ability to treat the most complex stroke cases. Fewer than 1 percent of hospitals in the country have this designation.
Once Kelly arrived at TMH, the team sprang into action to treat her. She was taken to get a CT scan right away.
“I had no idea I was having a stroke,” she said. “It was scary. Especially not being able to communicate.”
Not only could she not speak, but because Kelly had also lost function of her arm, she couldn’t write either. She did her best to make motions and grunt to try to communicate with her care team.
“It was like a horrible game of charades,” she said.
While the team was working to treat her, Kelly was presuming the worst. The then-single mother of two had worked as a mammographer for over 14 years. She was worried she would never be able to work again or care for her two young sons – one who is non-verbal.
Clot-Busting Drug Helps Kelly
But Kelly was quickly seen by Matthew Lawson, MD, an endovascular neurosurgeon and Stroke Medical Director at TMH, who determined the best course of action would be tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, a drug used to break up a blood clot and restore blood flow to the brain after a stroke.
After some side effects resided, another CT scan confirmed that the treatment worked. The blood clot in her brain had been busted by the tPA.
Kelly began to feel better, but she still had a long road ahead of her. She continued to recover in the Vogter Neuro & Trauma Intensive Care Unit where speech, occupational and physical therapists visited her the very next day. As she was working on regaining her ability to speak, Kelly’s mom recorded a video asking her the same questions each day.
“What’s your name?”
“Kelly.”
“Where do you live?”
“Tallahassee.”
“Where do you work?”
“Women’s Imaging.”
At first, her answers weren’t easy to understand, but by the second or third day, Kelly realized she was improving. Because she was able to see her progress in the videos, Kelly remained positive.
After five days in the hospital, Kelly was discharged.
Kelly’s Speech Improves with Rehabilitation
She spent seven months in speech therapy and a few months in occupational therapy with Tallahassee Memorial Rehabilitation Center’s Outpatient Rehab team.
“I had amazing therapists,” Kelly said. “They were patient and encouraging.”
Nearly two years later, Kelly still notices improvement in her speech from day to day.
“Before my stroke, talking came naturally. Now, I have to focus on every single movement of my tongue, cheek and lips to make sure that I’m forming the word the proper way,” Kelly said. “I have to focus on each individual word and the syllables that make up that word to form it.”
Since her stroke, Kelly met her now-husband, Nathan. They were married on Sept. 9, 2022, and Kelly gained two wonderful stepchildren.
She continues to work as a mammographer and enjoys interacting with patients every day.
Kelly Defeats Stroke, Celebrates Life
After Christmas last year, Kelly and Nathan went on their honeymoon in Dominica, an island in the Caribbean.
While there, they went on a difficult hike that Kelly did not think she could complete – a hike that’s 10 miles long with 5,000 feet of elevation change and usually takes seven hours for an experienced hiker.
“I haven’t really hiked a day in my life,” she said. “I did not want to do it because I didn’t believe I could.
Even though Kelly still has some weakness in the right side of her body from her stroke, she went. She hiked through thick mud up to her ankles, crossing rivers and scaling down canyon walls – all with her husband encouraging her the whole way. After eight hours, Kelly and Nathan finished the hike.
“I had overwhelming emotions when I completed it, and it brought me and my hubby to tears because I defeated something I told myself I couldn’t do,” she said. “I was just so grateful to be alive and be able to put my body to the test and overcome yet again.”
Kelly is truly grateful to the team who cared for her at TMH and credits Dr. Lawson with saving her life.
“I never want anyone to have to go through what I went through, but if they had to, I would want them to be at TMH,” Kelly said.
How Do You Know If You or a Loved One is Having a Stroke
Stroke is a very serious medical emergency that occurs when blood flow is cut off to an area of the brain – a literal “brain attack.” Without blood flow, brain cells are deprived of oxygen and begin to die. This means that the abilities controlled by those areas of the brain, such as memory and muscle control, are lost.
Stroke can happen to anyone at any time. Although stroke is more common among older adults, many people younger than age 65 have strokes. In fact, about one in seven strokes occur in adolescents and young adults ages 15 to 49.
If you think someone is having a stroke, BE FAST and call 9-1-1 immediately.
Balance - Sudden dizziness and/or balance issues
Face - Facial drooping and/or uneven smile
Arm - Weakness and/or numbness on one side of the body
Speech - Slurred speech and/or unable to get words out
Time - Time is brain! 32,000 brain cells die every second
For more information about Tallahassee Memorial’s Comprehensive Stroke Center, visit TMH.ORG/Stroke.
