Brandon Twp.- Felisha Anderson is only 31-years-old, but had recently worried that she was developing varicose veins in her leg.
It turns out it was something much more serious? a blood clot that would result in her suffering a stroke.
On the morning of Oct. 7, Anderson had wakened her daughters, Alyssa, 8, and Kaydince, 7, for school, but then the single mom and Bullfrog’s waitress fell on to her sofa, unable to speak.
‘I got a phone call from Alyssa saying something was wrong with her mom,? said Lu Ann Churchill, Alyssa’s grandmother. ‘I told her to call 9-1-1, it was terrible. Just thinking about it gets me choked up.?
Churchill hung up with her granddaughter, jumped into her car and drove from her Clarkston residence to Anderson’s Brandon Township home. Emergency vehicles were there when she arrived. At Genesys Regional Medical Center, tests showed the blood clot in Anderson’s leg had traveled to her brain, causing a stroke. Because doctors knew the timing of the stroke, they were able to administer t-PA (tissue pasminogen activator), a shot to break up the clot and prevent permanent damage, which must be given within the first few hours of the onset of a stroke to be effective and avoid brain hemorrhaging.
Anderson was then transported to St. John’s Providence Hospital in Detroit, where they are equipped to do brain surgery if needed. Fortunately, it was not necessary, as Anderson’s brain stopped swelling. Doctors determined that Anderson has a hole in her heart, likely since birth, that resulted in the clot going to her brain instead of her lung.
While she is expected to make a full recovery, there is a lot of work to be done in physical therapy as well as speech therapy. Anderson has suffered some paralysis on the right side and is able to say a few words, but not sentences.
‘Thank God she is walking,? said Churchill, who is caring for Anderson’s daughters. ‘The girls want their mom. Doctors are hoping for a close to 100 percent recovery.?
Anderson has no health insurance. She moved to the township about three years ago to ‘get a new start? and be near her former mother-in-law. She has worked at Bullfrogs in the township the past few years. Churchill calls her a ‘kind-hearted, strong person trying to give her children a better life.?
Two gofundme accounts have been established to help Anderson during her recovery. To learn how you can help, go to https://www.gofundme.com/765xwbxg (31-year-old mother of 2 had a stroke) or ‘Felisha Anderson’s Recovery? at https://www.gofundme.com/anderson-felisha