It was a wintery December day when Kevin Schaumburg, of Kankakee, began to feel like something may be off. He had been spending time with family when he recounted that he started to lose feeling in his hand and arm. Both he and his wife, Jodi, work in healthcare, so she felt it would be best to give him an at-home stroke assessment to evaluate symmetry in the body, his strength, and speech. When he passed the assessment, she still checked in with her peers to get their thoughts. But it was in the evening when his condition began to worsen.
After falling asleep while watching television with one of his daughters, Kevin said he couldn’t remember his wife’s or dog’s name when he woke up. According to Jodi, he was slurring his speech and couldn’t form coherent thoughts.
“It was terrifying,” she said, adding that she knew it also scared their 17- and 12-year-old daughters who were there that night.
Kevin was sent to his local hospital in Kankakee, but it was determined that he needed a higher level of care and had to be transferred to Ascension Alexian Brothers in Elk Grove Village – which houses a comprehensive stroke center. Comprehensive Stroke Centers deliver advanced imaging and treatment for complex stroke cases. The advanced capability at these centers includes 24/7 monitoring, advanced imaging, specialists, neurovascular and endovascular procedures, a neuroscience intensive care unit, and rehabilitation services.
Care teams determined that Kevin had a dissected carotid artery: a tear in the inner layer of an artery in his neck. Kevin’s condition began to improve, and as part of his care plan, he was scheduled for an MRI. But it was during this test that Kevin began to feel panicked.
“I remember the hospital announcing that there was a stroke while I was in the waiting room during Kevin’s MRI,” Jodi said. “I just started getting a sinking feeling that it was him.”
It had been. For the second time in such a short period, Kevin was going through another stroke.
“As the test kept going, I was trying to say things to myself and I couldn’t find the words,” Kevin said. “I wanted to ask for help and get the care team’s attention, and I finally did.”
What felt like a few minutes for Kevin was actually a few hours.
"Upon noticing stroke-like symptoms, such as: balance concerns, abnormal eye movements, facial droop, difficulty moving one side of body or other, speech issues, one should immediately call 9-1-1,” said Ascension Alexian Brothers neurosurgeon Dr. Tamir Hersonskey. “Some mistakes you can fix, but ignoring stroke symptoms is a mistake you cannot.”
Kevin spent an additional four days in intensive care and returned home about a week after his stay at Ascension Alexian Brothers. He spent five months in speech therapy, attending three times a week, and participated in other physical and occupational therapies for several months.
“Immediately after treatment, Kevin couldn’t move the right side of his body, and he wasn’t speaking at all,” Jodi recalled. “During one of his initial speech assessments, all I could do was sit in and cry.”
She explained that for a few weeks, Kevin still couldn’t place her name, but with every therapy session he was advancing “leaps and bounds.”
“Writing things out was such a challenge for me. It was almost as if I had dyslexia. I could recognize that some of the sentences I was putting together had words in the wrong place, but I couldn’t figure out how to fix it,” Kevin said of his recovery.
By March, the pair were able to run simple errands, and by the end of the summer, Kevin was able to return to his job.
“His confidence has grown so much,” Jodi said.
The couple expressed their gratitude for the Ascension Alexian Brothers care team for acting quickly to treat Kevin’s stroke, which helped protect his cognitive function.
Recognizing the warning signs of a stroke can help support health and well-being. The sooner you arrive at a hospital, the sooner a care team can provide treatment when clinically appropriate. Utilize the acronym “B.E. F.A.S.T.” for recognizing a stroke:
Balance: Has the person suddenly lost their balance?
Eyes: Has the person’s vision suddenly degraded in one or both eyes?
Face: Does the person’s face look uneven? If you can’t tell, try having the person smile.
Arm: Is one arm weak?
Speech: Is the person having trouble speaking or using slurred speech? Do they seem confused?
Time: Call 9-1-1 immediately.
