Young father and husband declares: “I am blessed to still be here” following stroke.
The last thing Phillip Austin, 36, husband and father of four, was expecting when he awoke on the first day of November 2017 was a cerebral stroke. The only “sign” of a problem he recalled is that after raking wet leaves a few days prior to his stroke, Austin thought he might have pulled a muscle in the back of his neck.
The Muskegon resident and his family are active and love to be outdoors, attend sporting events, and enjoy the beach and boating.
“I woke up at 5 a.m. with a pretty severe headache and found that I couldn’t walk straight. I took medicine for the headache and went back to bed but then realized that I needed to go back to the bathroom because I felt like I was going to throw up,” Austin said.
No stranger to having headaches, Austin recognized that this headache was different, so his wife drove him to the ED at Mercy Health Muskegon.
The team in the ED immediately recognized that something was wrong and began testing to determine the cause. “They kept me informed and explained that they found evidence of a cerebral stroke.”
Austin was then transferred to Mercy Health Hauenstein Neuroscience Center for regional, expert care, where Vascular Neurologist Christopher Goshgarian, MD, performed the initial consult.
“Today, we treat strokes as we do heart attacks — they are considered an emergency. Time is of the essence. Phillip presented as a young person with blood clot that had formed in a vessel that had a tear in it, located at the back of his neck. That clot led to stagnant blood flow, so we immediately started him on blood thinning medication to stabilize the clot and prevent other clots from forming,” said Goshgarian.
Austin responded positively to treatment with blood-thinning medication and was cleared to return home after six days.
“I wasn’t scared for myself,” said Austin, “but this event was scary in the sense that I did not want to leave my wife without a husband or my kids without a dad.”
A Second Stroke
Phillip and his wife had been sent home with a series of self-tests to perform so that they could report any changes in Phillip’s condition.
“The first night I slept well and the next morning, I did the self-tests but realized that I couldn’t follow my wife’s finger with my hand.” When Austin spoke, his speech was unrecognizable, and when he tried to get up, he couldn’t feel his feet, face or hands.
Thinking it would be faster if she drove her husband to the ED at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, Austin’s wife set out immediately but ran out of gas halfway to Grand Rapids.* Austin’s wife then called an ambulance.
“It was a blessing in disguise,” Austin shared, “because by the time I got to Saint Mary’s, I had been all hooked up and was ready for the procedure that Dr. Deol eventually performed. It turned out to be a good day!”
Testing revealed that Austin had returned with worsening symptoms because the clot had moved from the back of the neck to the base of his brain.
Medical Director of Neurointerventional Services Baljit Deol, MD, explained the options, along with the risks and benefits to the couple.
“My wife and I had to decide whether to treat the clots with medication or to have Dr. Deol do a procedure to remove the clots. We opted to have the procedure because I didn’t want to live with clots knowing they could move and go deeper into my brain.”
During the successful thrombectomy, Deol removed two clots from the back of Austin’s brain. Following the procedure, Austin immediately felt better and was able to walk and talk. For a brief time he had double vision but experienced a full recovery almost immediately. Unlike many stroke patients, Austin did not need physical therapy.
“I have no long-lasting issues from the stroke, but I will be on blood thinners for a while longer. I was back at work in a month and a half. It could have been much worse.”
Goshgarian, who sees Austin for follow-up appointments, says Austin’s prognosis is very good. “The chance of this happening again is between one and three percent.”
While there are no long-lasting issues for Austin, his stroke was an eye-opening experience.
“Now I see life in a different way. I make my family more of a priority in my life, and I relate better to people who have had major life trauma. Because I almost met with death, I try to work on being better myself.”
Austin has come to love the doctors and nurses at Mercy Health, whom he describes as ‘unbelievable.’
“I can’t say enough good things about Mercy Health. They really care and do all they can to make life better for the patients and their families. Mercy Health saved my life, and I will be forever grateful.”
Learn about Mercy Health’s stroke program.
*Mercy Health recommends calling 9-1-1 if you are having symptoms of a stroke rather than trying to drive yourself.