~ Christy E.
We don’t walk around in thunderstorms. Our oldest son, West was diagnosed with Leukemia in December of 2004. Six months later we got confirmation that he was on the Autism Spectrum. Two weeks after my 44th birthday, I had a heart attack. On Halloween 2015, my wife Christy, at 44 years of age, suffered a hemorrhagic stroke.
We have been fortunate in our bad luck. West’s Leukemia, ALL, was 95% survivable. He is high functioning enough, on the autism spectrum, to attend regular school. My heart attack was due to an inherited trait, easily treated with medication. Christy survived her stroke, only just, and has made miraculous strides in her recovery. We expect to have her final surgery sometime early 2017, and she can focus all her energy on recovering use of her right side.
Thanks to TAP, communication is something that has come back faster and better than anything else. While she is restricted in her physical activities, she has been dedicated to working on her aphasia. TAP has allowed her to work on her recovery, and see the gains she is so anxious to achieve. While not everyone could eliminate speech therapy, as we have, attending TAP has shown greater improvement over time than anything else. I believe, the facilitated interaction with other stroke victims, has shown Christy that while the improvements come slowly, they do continue to come, if you are dedicated to the work. TAP has provided the environment and expertise to allow her to not just improve, but thrive.