In 1921, the first radio baseball game was broadcast, Warren Harding was inaugurated as president, Albert Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, and a woman named Helen Brown was born in Akron, Ohio.
Brown, who turned 102 last month, made history at the Cleveland Clinic Akron General earlier this year.
Hospital officials believe she is the oldest patient at the Cleveland Clinic to undergo thrombectomy (removal of blood clots) after a stroke.
During a recent interview with Scripps News Cleveland, Brown wore a T-shirt with the word “Blessed” on it.
“Oh, I’m blessed with my health and my family,” she said.
Brown was 101 years old when he suffered a stroke in his Akron home last January.
Mr. Brown was in bed upstairs when he suddenly found himself unable to lift his arms. Her mouth began to contort and her words became slurred. she knew what was going on.
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“I knew I had a stroke because I couldn’t move anything,” said Brown.
Brown’s daughter, Deirdre Foreman, had just come down the stairs and heard her mother calling her, but could not understand what she was saying. She hurried back up the stairs.
“I turned it on and said, ‘Mom, what’s wrong?’ And she said, ‘I had a stroke,'” said Foreman.
Her family called for help and she was taken to Akron General Hospital, where doctors performed a thrombectomy to remove the blood clot from her brain.
Foreman said the family was praying in the waiting room when Dr. Firas Al-Ali appeared and announced that the operation was a success.
“I heard this guy say, ‘I got it! I got it!'” Foreman told Scripps News Cleveland.
Dr. Dimanto Dani, director of Akron General’s Neuroscience Critical Care Unit, said Brown’s age is not a limiting factor because he is otherwise healthy and has family support.
“Age is just a number. I think it’s more important: Is there a way we can give patients a life with less or no disability,” Dani said. “Every patient has the right to life, every patient has the right to the best possible care.”
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There were fears that Brown would not be able to walk again, but his family said he has unexpectedly recovered and is getting around the house with the help of a walker.
“She taught us to be patient. She taught us that Brown girls don’t quit,” Foreman said.
Born in Alabama, Brown moved to Akron near the end of World War II. She worked at Goodyear on her aircraft and Goodrich on her rubber assembly line before teaching at Smith Elementary School.
She lost her six-month-old child to spina bifida, and has since had four children with her husband, Early.
“I tried to eat the right foods, I didn’t drink, I didn’t smoke,” Brown said when asked what the secret to living to 102 was.
May is Stroke Awareness Month and encourage families to remember the acronym FAST (Face Drooping Arm Weakness Speech Impairment Time) to recognize stroke symptoms and the importance of prompt help. calling out to people.
“We thank God and plan to keep her here as long as possible,” Foreman said.
Ms. Brown also continues to count her blessings, recognizing that her stroke survival could help others reach 100+.
“It’s history for someone else, and maybe they learned something through my surgery that could help someone else.”
This article was originally published by Bob Jones at: Scripps New Cleveland.
