I did not tell my mother that I had a headache that simply wouldn’t go away. Your mother always has a way of knowing when something is not right with their child. By now, my sister has been told that something was off with me. She insisted that I take my blood pressure. Under pressure, I relented and took my blood pressure via a blood pressure monitor that my aunt owned. My blood pressure was elevated and that of course sent warning signals to my entire family. I tried to downplay it to assure my family that I was okay. I told them that I would get checked out after the holiday. The intense headache made it difficult to get through the holidays.

Upon my return home to Chicago, I took myself to the ER on the eve of New Year’s Eve 2003. The “holiday staff” was on duty. I was seen by a 3rd year medical school intern. I am a former athlete, was in good shape, and 41 years of age. I presented with elevated blood pressure, an intense headache, and pressure on my chest. Yet, the medical school intern diagnosed me with “holiday stress” and told me to follow up with my physical in a couple days.

I was sent home and the headache and chest pressure intensified. I knew something was very wrong. I returned to the same ER the day after New Year’s Day. Thankfully, the regular staff was on duty. I was given an EKG An electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) is a recording of the electrical signals of the heart. By placing electrodes on the skin, it measures the electrical activity of the heart over time. upon my arrival. Immediately afterwards I was taken for a CAT scan A Computed Axial Tomography (CAT) scan is a medical imaging technique to create detailed internal images of the body. , and it was determined that I had suffered an Ischemic Stroke An ischemic stroke is when a blood vessel is blocked, and therefore the blood supply to a part of the brain is obstructed. This causes damage to the brain cells. .

I was misdiagnosed as many women are at the ER. It took me 6 months of intense physical therapy to regain full recovery from my stroke. I suffered some left-sided weakness and cognitive issues. I see now with 20 years of new eyesight. I have been an advocate for women’s heart health ever since recovering from my stroke. I sincerely hope that by sharing my story it will help save lives.

I am honored to work with SMARTSHAPE with advocacy and innovative solutions to address heart disease, a leading cause of death.

Dina Piersawl
North Las Vegas, NV
20-year stroke survivor