My Mis Diagnosis

My name is Diondria Cervantes, I am a wife, daughter, mother of three ages 12, 6, and 4 along with two beautiful sisters and a large amount of family that have all been by our side. First off, I would like to thank you for opening and reading my story. I will admit that I am a person that will never ask for help, until now, I am not asking for help not just for myself but also for my husband and our beautiful children. As of October 10th, 2017, a tragedy has hit our lives that will change forever. It was a typical day until 4:45 pm when I fell for no apparent reason. I thought it was weird and figured I was just tired until the drive back home about 20 minutes after the fall, I noticed it felt like I had 50-pound weight sitting on my right shoulder to follow with my hand not being able to stay on the stirring wheel anymore. Within minutes it hit my right leg and me having to use my left side to drive that journey home.

By the time I got home I was driving with the left side of my body and came to see my husband was waiting for me outside and noticed something was wrong. My Mother came to my house and the second she saw me she said I think you’re having a stroke. I Gave kisses and hugs to the babies and left. On the drive to the hospital things were not getting any better I was unable to hold my head up and was not able to talk clearly. When we arrived at the hospital they started an MRI within the hour. After the one scan of my head the doctors easily said that I was only having an Acute Migraine which was causing this. My mother argued with the doctors that there was something wrong and this was not NO MIGRAINE!

I was released from the hospital and was escorted by a wheel chair to the vehicle due to not having strength to walk. The following morning, I was unable to get out of bed due to not being able to move the right side of my body. So, we once knew again this was not a Migraine. We went back to the doctors and another doctor told me I was not having a migraine. She was afraid I was having a Neurological Disorder such as Multiple Sclerosis. She decided there were no testing she could do for me because this was out of her expertise.

After several months of testing and long waiting my neurologist found our answer we’ve been awaiting which was not Multiple Sclerosis nor Migraine. On April 10th, 2018 my Neurologist called me with my diagnoses of having an Ischemic Stroke and would now be referring me to a Cardiologist. On April 17th, 2018 is when my Cardiologist gave me my reality. I had asked him when will I be get better, so I can get back to work to help my family? He let me know I would not being going to work any time soon that my recovery window has past, and I would need to learn to live life differently. I will now have to deal with right side weakness, slurred speech, memory problems, loss of strength, body tremors, vision loss, headaches, fatigue, inability to drive, and the loss of my independence.

As of now I will continue to gain my independence back by staying positive and strong with a smile on my face for not only myself but my family and friends. I will do whatever it takes to try and get back to my full strength even though I know it’s a long road to recovery. As for now I see there are moments in our lives that we need help, and this is my moment. My family and I have suffered traumatically all due to a stroke being diagnosed as a migraine. I lost my job, our family vehicle, and filed for bankruptcy. My Husband is being the best husband he can be by working full time and coming home to take care of me and our children, especially my six year old daughter who needs the use of oxygen daily at our expense. I would love to take a little stress off by helping us during this financial struggle we have month to month. Any money you can provide to us will be greatly appreciated. Thank you and God Bless.