TAMPA, Fla. — About 795,000 Americans suffer a stroke each year and it kills more than 140,000.
Rhonda White-Hodge never imagined she’d have a stroke. “So, we get up in the morning. You know, we get our day started,” said White-Hodge.
One February morning in 2024, she was taking care of her husband – who was on dialysis at the time – when all of a sudden she started to frown and fell to the floor.
“And because my husband worked for a hospital for 33 years in his career, he recognized right away that I was having a stroke,” explained White-Hodge.
He immediately called 9-1-1 and an ambulance was there within 15 minutes.
“As they’re asking me questions, they’re like, ‘Can you move your arm?’ And I feel everyone on me and I’m saying, ‘Well, if you let my arm go, yeah. I can move!’” said White-Hodge while laughing.
However, she’d later find out, her speech wasn’t as clear as she thought it was.
“My husband was saying to me – you know, we were talking about what was happening – afterward, he was like, ‘Rhonda, when you were there and they were asking you those questions’ – he said that – ‘You were mumbling,’” explained White-Hodge.
White-Hodge had a major blockage in her middle cerebral artery. Essentially, not enough blood was getting to her brain. Her doctor said it’s a miracle she survived because that type of blockage is fatal in 50% to 60% of cases.
“She’s doing phenomenal. Like I said, she’s the whole reason I enjoy my career and there’s nothing better than for me to see someone come in paralyzed and then see them a few days later, they’re back to almost their normal life,” said Dr. Jeffrey Miller.
Dr. Miller said it’s important to know how a stroke appears when it’s happening.
“There’s a mnemonic we use that came out just a little while ago. It’s called BE FAST. B is for Balance, if you’re off balance all of a sudden; E is for eye movement of vision; F is for facial droop on one side or another; A is for arm weakness; S and T are for difficulty speaking and then time, to get them into the hospital as fast as possible,” explained Dr. Miller.
As for White-Hodge, she’s just happy to have a second chance at life and she wants others not to ignore the signs of an impending stroke.
“If you have those signs and it’s a headache that is very unusual – like your head doesn’t feel like that normally – call a doctor, go to the emergency room because it’ll save your life,” said White-Hodge.
