My Mom Had a Stroke
How She Recovered in 4 Weeks When Doctors Said It Could Take 2 Years
I was at Dave Asprey's biohacking conference when I found out my mom had a stroke.
There I was, high on how much we can do to help ourselves, and my mom was in the hospital.
She was following a keto flex diet, had fixed her gut, slept well, and exercised regularly. But she was STRESSED.
Stress Kills
Mom said to me last week, "Stress can kill you."
I laughed and said, "Yea, I know."
She insisted, "No, I mean literally."
"Yes, mom, stress alone can cause a heart attack or stroke."
"I wish I'd known that before," she sighed.
Mom's only symptom of stroke for a whole day was dizziness. Fortunately, she has MagnaWave PEMF at her house, and she used it the first moment she felt dizzy. Because of the way PEMF can get blood flowing, I feel like it saved her life... at the very least minimized the initial damage, paving the way for her recovery.
She went straight into rehab from the hospital and started to get worse. In a modern, professional facility, they strapped her to a chair and wouldn't let her move around. They wheeled her when she could walk (slowly with assistance). They were concerned about their liability first, her recovery was always second.
When a physical therapist told her it could take her two years to get better, I lost my shit, and we doubled down on getting her out. It wasn't easy. She had high blood pressure after the stroke, and the drugs weren't bringing it down.
I saw this podcast with Ben Azadi & Dr. Nathan Bryan as we struggled to bring my mom's blood pressure down with medication following her stroke. "50% of people don't respond to blood pressure medication,"Dr. Bryan said. That was my mom's story too!
I felt silly for not realizing how effective NO was for blood pressure. There's a whole chapter about Nitric Oxide in my book. I knew my mom had run out of n1o1 lozenges and had not reordered them a couple months ago. I didn't realize how vital supplementing this molecule was for her health.
I gave her some from my stash, with physician oversight, and we were able to bring down her blood pressure within 2 days (after they'd put her on 3 different meds that weren't helping at all). By adding n1o1, she was able to get out of rehab 4 days early. Two weeks after leaving rehab, her nurse practitioner lowered her dose of the prescription drugs because the n1o1 continued to work so well. Mom tests her blood pressure before and after she takes n1o1. The results for her are immediate and measurable every time.
But that was just the start… that's how we broke her out of rehab prison.
Once she got home, she was free to stand up anytime she wanted. This was huge. She was depressed in rehab from being strapped to a wheelchair or bed. At home, she could use her MagnaWave PEMF again, and resumed using it an hour a day. We ordered a Zona Health device for her blood pressure, and it became invaluable for giving her immediate feedback on fine motor skills with her right hand. At the time she came home, she couldn't hold a fork with her right hand.
Mom also used CeraThrive every day. We love the light on the back of the device, over the brain stem. Her stroke was in the left PONS, and getting energy there has been very helpful.
We love all of that, and it all helps, but the game-changer was hyperbaric oxygen therapy. I knew it would be, and it was the 2nd reason I pushed so hard to get her home. In Louisville, KY, about 30 minutes from my mom's house, there's an outstanding wellness clinic called VyFy Wellness. For $375/mo she could go for 90 minutes of HBOT 6 days a week. The protocol is officially 5 days on and 2 days off, but she's going 6 days a week because she has more energy after she completes a session, and she has really needed it.
The stroke zapped her energy. Frankly, I don't know enough about strokes to understand why, but she described good days and bad. Some days she walked ok. Some were wobbly. Every day until last week, she was depleted by 7pm. That's normal for a lot of people, but my mom's not like that. She's a fireball. She stays very active.
Mom's Recovery with HBOT 6 Days a Week:
- By the end of week 1: She was managing stairs without issue.
- In week 2: She could prepare some foods and feed her dog.
- By week 3: She could slowly walk the dog a quarter mile without assistance.
- By week 4: She felt her balance come back with a slight limp. She has also tested her driving skills which were no worse than before the stroke, I joked.
The most remarkable thing about mom's recovery is in her face. She's smiling. She's so happy to be able to take care of herself. Laundry isn't so much of a chore after the ability to load and unload a washer and dryer, carry a laundry basket up and down stairs, and fold clothes was at one time impossible. She's grateful for the ability to cook, clean, and literally stand on her own.
I can't thank the team at VyFy Wellness enough for how they contribute to my mom's happiness too. It feels like I'm walking in with Norm from Cheers when we walk in together. They greet her enthusiastically when she shows up. You'll notice at the end of the video, she has decided to sit in the chamber in the video game chair that's low to the ground because it's more comfortable. She still needs to push herself up with the help of a chair to get up off the floor, but how many 75 year olds can get up off the floor as well as you'll see her do in the video. Maybe that'll be the big change we see after her 2nd month of HBOT. Stay tuned!