Final part of our Three Stromies Spotlight:
Brought together through the common experience of suffering strokes at young ages, these three women are not only are thriving, but they’re helping other stroke and brain injury survivors feel less alone and supported through their recovery. Read about how they met and how they’re making the world a better place.
The Stromies are a trio of stroke survivors who have made it their mission to spread awareness and encouragement. Each Stromie longed to find someone their age who could truly understand what it felt like to reorient back into society post stroke. Someone who understood neurofatigue and what it felt like to need a nap in the middle of the day. Someone who understood the frustration of aphasia when trying to communicate a specific thought. Someone who understood being so overwhelmed and overstimulated in certain situations that they literally had to leave. Someone who simply “got it”.
Luck was on their side. Tamsen, Angie, and Sarah met through their volunteer work with the American Heart & Stroke Association. Tamsen’s husband jokingly said that they were like stroke homies “stromies” and the name stuck.
Stromie Tamsen was the keynote speaker for the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Expo in 2016, which was attended by Stromie Angie. Though they didn’t meet that night, they happened to be seated next to one another at an American Heart Association Advocacy Summit months later.
It didn’t take long for the two to become fast friends. Both stroke survivors, moms, and fitness instructors, they had enough in common to compel them to start meeting up for coffee and conversations.
Unbeknownst to Tamsen and Angie, a fairly new stroke survivor (Stromie Sarah) was searching for connections within the stroke survivor community. Sarah happened upon a blog about Tamsen posted on the American Heart Association website and found her online. The two met up and found many commonalities in their stroke recovery journeys.
Tamsen knew that Sarah and Angie should meet, so she set up a time. The three met for coffee (none for Sarah – she prefers a diet coke) and they traded stories of survival.
The three stroke survivors were so relieved to meet other people like them. They quickly realized that their stories could be powerful reminders to other stroke survivors that there’s life on the other side of stroke recovery.
Initially, the Stromies wanted to write a book and knew that the first step was to establish a media presence. They created accounts and their Instagram page took on a life of its own with over 300 followers the first month. They realized that there were others like themselves – a lot of others! Young stroke survivors began sending in their stories and the community they built together is continuing to touch many lives.
They decided to put the book idea on hold and see where their current journey takes them. They enjoy sharing their blogs as well as guest blogs, volunteering with the American Heart & Stroke Association, doing podcasts, and connecting with survivors in their own community as well as globally. They have already connected with about 20 young stroke survivors in their hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. They are excited to see the Stromies journey continue to unfold.
To continue to follow the Three Stromies’ journey, follow them at @three_stromies on Instagram and read their blog at www.stromies.com. Connect with more stroke and brain injury survivors on the YouSoRock Facebook Support Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/yousorock.
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