Theresa DeMers called out into the darkness,” Are you alright?” There was no response, and she repeated the question two times, waiting for her husband’s reply.

Steve DeMers had already arisen from bed a couple of times in the early morning hours of October 2, 2013 – that was not very unusual. However, when he awoke again at 5:30 a.m., he felt that something was wrong – he just could not tell exactly what the problem was. He stood up and walked to the bathroom. Steve said, “I had trouble walking because my balance was so bad, and my right arm was limp. I made it back to the bed and sat down.” He could hear Theresa, but could not summon the words to answer her. “All I could do was groan,” he said. Theresa looked closely at Steve and said, “Oh, honey, I think you are having a stroke.”

Theresa called 9-1-1, and the emergency medical technicians (EMTs) arrived within minutes. “At the Hospital, Steve was quickly taken to a patient room in the Emergency Department. Terrill D. Burnworth, D.O., ordered an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) which confirmed that Steve was having a stroke. “Our pastor met us in the Emergency Department to give Steve the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick,” Theresa said. “We knew that Steve had the potential for a stroke because of his heart issues. We had studied the signs and symptoms, and they were very easily recognizable when it happened. He could not talk, his balance was unsteady, his right arm was weak, and one side of his mouth drooped.”

Steve has been treated for heart issues since childhood. He had an atrial septal defect, an opening between the heart’s upper chambers that did not close properly after birth. At the age of 10, Steve weighed just 60 pounds and was much smaller than other boys in his class. He underwent open-heart surgery to close the opening, which was considered an innovative procedure in 1959. The surgery was mostly successful, but Steve continued to have a heart murmur that indicated there was some heart valve leakage. Still, Steve’s overall health improved, and he quickly caught up to his classmates in size by the time that he was in high school.

“My doctors continued to monitor me closely, and in 2004, my cardiologist in Columbus advised me to have an ablation procedure to treat atrial fibrillation. (Ablation corrects the heart rhythm by destroying small amounts of abnormal tissue.) Shortly after the procedure, I had a TIA (transient ischemic attack – often called a ‘mini stroke’), and then I had another TIA one week later,” Steven said.

Steve recovered well from the TIAs with minor speech and balance impairment. His physicians advised him that the mini strokes increased his risk for another stroke in the future.

In 2011, Steve suffered a minor heart attack and had a stent implanted in his lower artery at LMH. He completed LMH’s 12-week cardiac rehabilitation program and returned to his work in dual roles as Business Manager at Catholic Times in Columbus, and Deacon at St. Francis de Sales Church in Newark.

“When the stroke occurred last fall, I was not frightened,” Steve recalled. “Everyone at LMH took good care of me – I knew that I was more than just a number to them.” Steve was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at LMH for several days. The stroke had occurred in the speech and language center of his brain’s frontal lobe. With this stroke, his speech, reading and balance impairments were much more pronounced than from his TIAs.

Fortunately, the Acute Inpatient Rehab Unit (ARU) opened in early 2013, so when Steve recovered enough to be dismissed from the ICU on the second floor, he was admitted to the ARU on the sixth floor. “The Rehab unit gave me a jump start in all areas,” Steve said. “We focused on a combination of physical and speech therapies. When I first arrived, my right hand was limp. By the time I left one week later, I was able to eat with my right hand. For several hours every day, the staff coached me with activities to improve dexterity and strength. They also helped me walk in the hallways and up steps to improve my balance. I had short periods of rest, and then I was up and active again. The staff was really upbeat, and it rubbed off on the patients. Those who were able would gather in the social room. One patient played the harmonica for us, and it turned out to be a wonderful experience. We were even encouraged to wear regular street clothes which made it feel more like a comfortable home setting.”

Steve retired from Catholic Times due to significant difficulty with speech and reading, but is pleased that his impairments are improving. “I found that I can read much better if I read aloud. The text makes more sense if I can actually hear the words,” he explained. Steve continues to perform many of his duties at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church, and hopes to be able to resume his full Deacon responsibilities soon.