The Strokecast

01/05/2023

Is this the most American playset? It's a children's medical facility playplace. It has a credit card reader.
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Fun day shopping with the always delightful

24/04/2023

High blood pressure leads millions of strokes and heart attacks around the world every year. Home blood pressure monitors can help us stay on top of it before it causes a problem. This week, Carol Lucarelli of Omron Healthcare joins us to tell us what we need to know about the monitors on the market today.

Visit http://Strokecast.com/Omron to learn more.

21/04/2023

Waiting for Candlelight Tribute to Radiohead with the always delightful

17/04/2023

Pain sucks. Chronic pain sucks even more. And for many stroke survivors, this is now their life. Survivors have talked about living with pain, even when there is nothing "wrong" with the limb. And once you've lived with pain for several months you don't become accustomed to it. In fact, the nervous system increases your response to pain.

So what's going on here? And how does chronic pain impact how big we think our hands are?

Pain researcher and PhysioTherapist Brendon Haslam talks about the latest post-stroke pain research in this conversation.

Learn more at http://Strokecast.com/Pain

11/04/2023

Classic airport lunch -- 3 shot Americano, raspberry-lemon scone, and pumpkin loaf from while waiting for AS1051
Carrying it to the table was, of course, the challenge.
[Id: from left to right: a scone, a tall plain white coffee cup, and a piece of pumpkin loads sit on a table. Airport windows are in the background]

09/04/2023

Off to San Francisco to do some training on Microsoft and creating video in . I use as one of my main demos. And I really like working with this client so it should be a good trip.
[ID: Bill sits in seat 11D on AS1284 looking at the camera while wreaking a mask. His hair is sweaty]

05/04/2023

A new study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine () reiterates what we already knew: The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines do NOT cause stroke. In fact, as previous studies already showed, getting the vaccine DECREASES your chances of having a stroke because they decrease your chances of contracting a severe COPVID-19 infection.
You can read about the latest study here: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2302134
I previously talked about vaccine safety with epidemiologist Dr. Remle Crowe at http://Strokecast.com/vaccine
[ID: A red square with screen clips from an article. The text and selected highlighted screen shots read:
Important note about mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines and Stroke! As published in the New England Journal of Medicine
Stroke, Myocardial Infarction, and Pulmonary Embolism after Bivalent Booster
We previously found no increase in the incidence of stroke, acute myocardial infarction, or pulmonary embolism after administration of the monovalent vaccine.2,3 Thus, we wanted to assess whether the risk of such events differed after receipt of the bivalent booster as compared with the monovalent booster.
At 21 days after the booster dose, we found no evidence of an increased risk of cardiovascular events among the recipients of the bivalent vaccine as compared with recipients of the monovalent vaccine. ]

05/04/2023

Scary fire ball is on fleek today. Do the kids still say that?

30/03/2023

So is getting a 3.5 hour dental procedure done today which means I got to ask folks at the desk at the office in downtown Seattle if there was a coffee shop nearby because I'm funny like that. And then wet laughed and laughed... actually they took the question seriously.
I can't blame them. It is 7:00 AM.
Regardless, I've got a couple charged laptops and my sewing kit so I should be good while she gets her gums and blasted or whatever they do at while I enjoy a 16 Oz quad dirty Chai, a chocolate chip cookie and some chocolate chip banana bread at Cherry Street espresso and over hear business conversations.
[ID: A cup of coffee, big cookie, and slice of cake along side a stickered laptop lid looking out a big city coffee shop window at the trash collection on a downtown street.

27/03/2023

It finally happened! is on this week!
Listen at http://strokecast.com/TawnieTheNeuroMermaid
Tawnie shares her story of misdiagnosis that left her bleeding into her brain for a week, the role of online communities and her partnership with , the impact of legal , and how becoming a have all contributed to her new, post-stroke life.
[ID: a red square. A picture of Tawnie wearing her mermaid tail while laying on the beach appears on the left. The text reads "Tawnie the Neuro Mermaid New episode in your favorite podcast app http://strokecast.com/tawnietheneuromermaid]

27/03/2023

After your brain bleeds for a week and a series of doctors don't take your concerns seriously, what do you do? If you're Tawnie the Neuro Mermaid, you leave the hospital, step away from teaching, become a mermaid, and channel your energy into empowering other members of the communities you are part of. This week, Tawnie joins us to share her journey, the role of mermaiding in her recovery, the power of the survivor community, and the role of medical cannabis in her life.

You can listen to the whole conversation at http://Strokecast.com/TawnieTheNeuroMermaid

25/03/2023

Aurora Donuts might be my new favorite donut place in Seattle.
It's not fancy or edgy. It's just simple, classic donuts from a clean store and reasonably priced. Good, working class donuts. I think the owners work the counter. They're friendly and enthusiastic without being excessively chatty. And they sometimes just throw in some extras. That's how my dozen donuts ended up with 14 donuts and an apple fritter. Highly recommended. and I will be back.
The neighborhood may be a little sketchy (it's in the heart of ho**er territory) but the shop is fine with a good amount of parking.

18/03/2023

Just chilling in a doing stuff to better share guests' journeys while does things.

13/03/2023

Heading back from .

13/03/2023

(highly recommended as a cabin mate) and I have wrapped up an awesome and head to the airport shortly. I have now completed one of the toughest parts of post-stroke travel for today:
I successfully installed my compression socks. Sexy AF, am I right?
And soon I get to see the delightful !

05/03/2023

June Hawkins had her stroke while working at a remote cross-country ski resort in Canada. After the adventure if getting to the satellite phone and eventually an ambulance settled down, she began her recovery.

Writing has been instrumental in this process, and she now helps other survivors write their way to their own recovers. She shares her story at http://Strokecast.com/June

22/02/2023

Yay! I made good time and actually got to my 8:30 eye appointment at at 8:00!

Boo. It's snowing and the office doesn't open until 8:30.

Yay! is open across the street and has an awesome Strawberry Mocha on the menu!

11/02/2023

Let's talk about the cripple tax.
When you're disabled everyone knows you have medical expenses and that sucks. But it's also more than that. You probably have to pay for adaptive great, mobility aids, and modifications to every home you will live in.
It's more than that, too.
Ten years ago. I had to replace my car battery. I went to and bought a battery, installed it, and returned the dead one in the space of a couple hours. I had two fully functioning hands then.
I just had to replace the battery again. Granted, ten years is pretty good for a car battery. But Costco won't install it for you.
So I had to bin an appointment elsewhere. That appointment got canceled so I had to book another shop elsewhere. And pay for install. The folks at Batteries Plus in Northgate were great (seriously nice folks). But still.
This process took me more than a day AND I had to pay an install fee. Because of my disability. This is the .
An extra day and $20 may not seem like a big deal, but when your repeat the process again and again for tasks you could do faster and for free by yourself, it adds up over time to thousands of dollars and hours as you try to live life.
My privilege means I can manage it, but many in our community who can not work at a fair wage or who have disabilities precluding their work in their vocation have a much bigger challenge.
So add the to the list of things to contend with after .
@costco

16/12/2022

A lot of people jumped into the voice over field over the past few years. Microphones got cheaper, audio editing got easier, and the pandemic forced folks to stay home anyway, and pay to play services offered to deliver clients, so why not pursue a career in ?

Paul Strikwerda of has been a voice over artist since well before the recent growth of the space. He coaches new artists and comments on trends in the field.

In 2018, Paul learned a vocal booth is a terrible place to have a . He shares his story of stroke and recovery in this conversation. And he answers the question, "Should stroke survivors pursue work in voice over?"

Visit http://Strokecast.com/VoiceOver to learn more.

09/11/2022

Waiting in line to drop off my ballot. It's a box drop off. And it's a line. For midterms. This is awesome and silly.

29/10/2022

YES!!!!!!!!!
From "Find Your Red Thread" by

29/10/2022

The American Heart Association is seeking nominations for Stroke Heroes!

Their looking for nominees in the following categories:
Survivor Hero
Pediatric Hero
Caregiver Hero
Equity Hero
Group Heroes

Think about the folks in your life connected to stroke and nominate some of your faves!

You can learn more here:

The American Stroke Association honors people who strive to overcome stroke — the No. 5 killer and a leading cause of disability in the United States. Stroke Hero Awards will be presented in five categories to those who educate, inspire and bring awareness about stroke locally or nationally.

26/10/2022

This week on the Successful and disABLED Podcast I speak with Bill Monroe, a Master Trainer for Microsoft, about our common experiences surviving ourr respective strokes along with the importance of a positive attitude and a positive mindset for the fullest possible recovery https://defineyourself.us/microsoft-master-trainer-and-stroke-survivor-bill-monroe/

22/10/2022

Took from downtown SF or to Oakland/Berkeley yesterday to meet , , and fellow for lunch.

It's always great to meet other members of this community in person for the first time. Food at Barry:s Burgers was great and the company was a delight. Maybe next time I'll remember to take more pictures.

20/10/2022

Traveling into San Francisco always makes my mind drift back to the days of the late nineties/early aughts reading magazine in coffee shops and coach seats on planes and envisioning the amazing future technology and the entrepreneurs promised us.
I think we've come to see much of that view was naive. We overestimated the humanity of people on social media. 9-11 altered the American world view in ways we're still grappling with. And the sunny future we hoped for on the electric orange pages didn't turn out quite as we hoped. In celebrating the rise of the and , we overlooked the rise of the toxicity that came work it.
Still, it's not all bad. Amazing things have happened because of tech in that time. people have a voice not available in 1994. The remote work opportunities today are possible. So many people have been able to create content in new ways.
It's not a fairy tale future, though. We had to grow up.
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12/10/2022

Hair and eyelash vending machines at the South center Mall. Clearly, there is a lot about women's (or men's or NB's) beauty regimens in 2022 that I just don't get.
No judgement; I'm just not sure what to do with the information that you can get angry forcing a dollar bill into a machine to get a Pepsi or a pint tail.
Now, time to to pick up with her newly blue hair

07/10/2022

First since the pandemic began as I sit at a DC restaurant on my second business trip in 3 weeks, reading the low-mid 200 pages portion of book. Is the world starting to return to almost normal? Or is it an illusion?
Last time I had a Guinness draught one was in Fort Lauderdale across the street from the before heading out on the 2020

25/09/2022

It was great meeting up in person with the Young Adult Stroke Survivors group in Seattle after so many Teams meetings. New people I've met only online are actual real human beings. Who knew? Thanks again, Jessica and Kurtiss

24/09/2022

Heading back to Seattle after a great week at hanging out with journalists, students, the Microsoft crew, and the bonus .

22/09/2022

New Strokecast episode live! What is transcranial Doppler ultrasound and why isn't it used more often with and ? And how can a robot transform care?
Dr. Robert Hamilton from Nova Signal and researcher Dr. Mark Rubin answer these questions and more in episode 167 at http://strokecast.com/TCD