Moms have strokes, too

Regular readers already know that I have a fabulous mother and mother-in-law, and don't need me to repeat how lucky I am in this regard.  But I still feel that I should acknowledge Mother's Day and somehow tie it in with pediatric stroke.

Probably most in utero stroke victims are not survivors (my speculations based on information about miscarriage rates and stroke rates, not something that I have read as such).  Stroke is one of a great many causes of miscarriage, which, along with infertility in general, is still very under-understood and too little discussed.  If you want to better understand and acknowledge the pain associated with these conditions, I highly recommend Elizabeth Hagen's Birthed and the guest posts on her blog about infertility and other dreams seemingly denied.

Also way underdiscussed in this country is maternal mortality.  Pregnancy and childbirth are still high risk endeavors for mothers, and as NPR reported this week, numbers of women who die in pregnancy are poorly tracked and rates are increasing in the US*.  If you haven't cried enough recently, you might want to read the whole piece on ProPublica.  Most of these women are not dying of strokes-- but some are.  Heart conditions and blood clots and strokes; with many of the deaths preventable with awareness, rapid diagnoses and treatment.

Kids have strokes.  And so do adults.  Act FAST: if you notice anyone with Face drooping, Arm weakness and Speech impairments, it is Time to call 9-1-1 (This from the American Stroke Association).

*Slight aside: Of course, pregnancy increased chances for domestic violence and, despite the numbers, the CDC cannot track this if it involves gun violence.  Because clearly the forefathers wanted to protect us against knowledge of people killing their family members by not infringing on our rights to a well-regulated militia.