Healthy 32-Year-Old Mom Speaks Up After Experiencing Stroke
Like many Ohioans, one of Amanda Lenza's favorite pastimes is riding the rollercoasters at Cedar Point, an amusement park a little over an hour from Cleveland.
But she's been on a figurative rollercoaster in 2023—one she'd like off of. On January 25, at the age of 32, Lenza had a stroke. It came "out of the blue," she says.
Lenza was active. A new mom to a now-15-month-old, she regularly walked at least a mile to the park and back with her daughter. She was relatively healthy.
However, like many people, she came down with her first viral infection in a few years in January—and it was rough. "I coughed too hard, lying on my stomach with my head turned," Lenza says. "It felt like I pulled a muscle in my neck.”
Lenza did what one would typically do when they believe they've tweaked their neck. She took some Ibuprofen, iced it and tried to relax. She figured it would go away within a few days. It did—very suddenly—but other symptoms began to appear.
"My vision went a little weird first thing in the morning," Lenza recalls. "I couldn’t see straight. I started rapidly losing control of my left side pretty much within the hour that it started.”
Lenza was tempted to brush it off. She was busy with her daughter, and she hoped it was just something weird that would go away with time. "I sat on the couch and thought, ‘My vision is a little weird…maybe I will just see if it passes,'" Lenza says.
But a louder voice in Lenza's head told her something was wrong, so she listened to that one. It likely saved her life. She texted her husband and told him to come home and call an ambulance.
On the way to Mercy Hospital, Lenza lost control of the left side of her body, continued to lose speech and noted her face was drooping. She realized what was happening, even though the paramedics couldn't give her an official diagnosis: she was having a stroke. "It clicked in my head," Lenza says.
At Mercy Hospital, Lenza kept declining. She couldn't move or speak, despite being fully awake. “I was cognizant and could understand what was going on around me," Lenza says. "I was really aware of what was happening, but I couldn’t say what was happening, and I couldn’t do anything about it.”
An emergency room doctor at Mercy had to be her voice, making a call to life-flight her to Cleveland Clinic, which has a neuromuscular unit with more resources and machines to help patients. “The last thing I remember was thinking that the oxygen mask they put on me was too tight," Lenza said. "I woke up the next day and had no idea what happened."
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'A Very Dangerous Type of Stroke'
Lenza was right: she was having a stroke—and the medical team at Cleveland Clinic needed to act quickly. "Hers was a very dangerous type of stroke [caused by a dissection, or tear]," says Dr. Shazam Hussain, MD, who treated Lenza at Cleveland Clinic. "Hers was in the back artery known as the basilar artery, which 90 percent of the time is actually a fatal event.”
In the other 10 percent of cases, Dr. Hussain typically sees patients develop life-altering disabilities. While Lenza was intubated, doctors performed a surgical procedure called a thrombectomy to restore blood flow.
"There was a tear in the blood vessel, which can make that a little challenging because you have to get across the tear to get to the main blood vessel," Dr. Hussain explains. Doctors also removed the debris and put in stents to fix the blood vessel.
'Pretty Much Back to Normal'
Lenza woke up the next day in the neuro ICU. "I was intubated…that was probably the worst thing, having a tube down my throat, but they took that out," Lenza says. "By the end of the day, everything hurt, but I could sit up, hold my own drink and use my phone."
Lenza moved to a regular room and walked out of the hospital within the week—albeit with a walker, which she used for about two weeks. She hasn't needed physical therapy. “I’ve just been chasing my toddler around the house for the last two months," Lenza says. "Shockingly, things have gone pretty much back to normal.”
She notices she gets out of breath a little easier, probably a side effect of the blood thinners she's taken while healing. She also takes Aspirin and cholesterol medicine to control "somewhat high levels"—a product of genetics, she says.
Doctors have also helped Lenza develop a diet plan to keep her blood pressure within normal ranges, and she probably won't ride a rollercoaster again because of the risk of jerking her head. "That’s disappointing," she says with a laugh.
But overall, Dr. Hussain thinks Lenza has a full life ahead of her. “She’s doing fantastic," Dr. Hussain says. "In the long run, I think she’s going to do great. The chance of her having another stroke is going to be low.”
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Uncommon, But Not Impossible
The CDC notes that a stroke can happen at any age, but the risk doubles every 10 years after a person turns 55. Still, younger people can experience strokes—one in seven strokes happen to individuals ages 15 to 49.
"We always think about a stroke as being a problem of the elderly, so when they get to an older age, 60s, 70s, 80s, that’s where strokes tend to occur," Dr. Hussain says. "However, we definitely are seeing strokes happening at a younger age.”
Health conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes increase the risk, according to the CDC. Women are more at risk at any age, and pregnancy and birth control pills can increase the probability of having a stroke.
What Are the Signs of a Stroke?
It didn't click for Lenza that she was having a stroke until she was in the ambulance, but she knew something was very wrong. Dr. Hussain says understanding abnormalities is critical to getting prompt care.
“Typically, people who have a dissection in either the front arteries called the carotid arteries or the back arteries called the vertebral arteries," Dr. Hussain says. "It usually comes with a really painful sensation. People describe it as having pain in the neck region or behind the eye. It’s really unlike any other pain they’ve ever experienced before."
It can be caused by heavy lifting or moving the head in an awkward position. People may hear a strain or pop. Here are the top things to look out for, Dr. Hussain says, which can be remembered with the acronym BE FAST.
Balance issues
Eyes (changes in vision or loss of vision)
Face (drooping)
Arm weakness
Speech difficulties
Time ("It's so important in the situation of a stroke," Dr. Hussain)
Prognosis and Recovery Vary
In addition to time, Dr. Hussain says Lenza's age likely worked in her favor. "The younger a person is, the more capacity for recovery they have," Dr. Hussain says. "The brain actually has a lot of capacity to heal, especially at that younger age. There is a lot more ability for the brain and body to heal.”
The thrombectomy also helped. "Since we were able to do the procedure and remove and get the blood flow restored, she ended up with very minimal damage to the brain from the stroke," Dr. Hussain says. "And with that, she made a very remarkable recovery, and improved quickly and [is] essentially went back to normal."
But outcomes vary depending on the location of the stroke and brain damage.
The Bottom Line: If You Think You're Having a Stroke, Act Fast
Dr. Hussain and Lenza know people can lower their stroke risk by keeping blood pressure and cholesterol low, sleeping, limiting alcohol use and eating nutritious foods. But a reduced risk doesn't mean zero risk.
"In cases like mine, where it’s out of the blue, the best thing I could’ve done and did was recognize I had the signs of stroke early, call an ambulance immediately and got help as soon as I could," Lenza says. "If we had waited to see if it passed…that would’ve been the worst-case scenario. Recognizing the signs of stroke and getting help as soon as possible, [those are] really the best [things] you can do.”
It's tempting to brush off symptoms, especially as a parent tasked with caring for a small human. Lenza nearly did. Dr. Hussain is glad she didn't—he's seen how it can affect outcomes.
"Unfortunately, we see people downplay it," Dr. Hussain says. "Her listening to her body and getting medical attention right away definitely contributed to her having the outcome that she did.”
Leaving her daughter for a few days has allowed her to watch her grow over a lifetime (even if she'll have to watch her ride rollercoasters from the sidelines). Lenza hopes other people—regardless of age or parenting status—do the same. “I would urge anyone, if you think, even slightly, that you are having a stroke, please go [to the hospital]," Lenza says.
Next up: 5 Doctor-Recommended Steps to Prevent a Stroke
Sources
Amanda Lenza, mother and patient at Cleveland Clinic
Dr. Shazam Hussain, MD, who treated Lenza at Cleveland Clinic