Piedmont Macon hosts Stroke Stroll to honor survivors and raise awareness about prevention

Stroke survivors gathered at Piedmont Macon Medical Center for the annual Stroke Stroll, an event promoting community, education, and life-saving prevention tips.

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Piedmont Macon Medical Center hosted its Stroke Stroll Thursday to celebrate stroke survivors from across Middle Georgia.

With 80 percent of strokes being preventable, Piedmont Macon says it wants to remind the community that prevention and quick action save lives. Piedmont Macon’s Medical Stroke Program Manager Monica Cook says early detection is key.

“Every forty seconds someone in the United States has a stroke,” she said. “So they’re happening very frequently, and when someone has a stroke there is a complete change in the brain that happens. And to give them a sense of community is paramount for not only their survival but their sense of getting back into the community, and we just want to be that hope for them.”

Cook shares some ways to prevent a stroke.

“Make sure you know your number and keep a watch on that number,” she said. “And if you’re on medication for blood pressure, take the medications. Also, reducing the risk can be controlling your cholesterol, blood sugar, maintaining a healthy weight and an active lifestyle,” said Cook.

Stroke survivor Pat Griffeth says after days of working, she could feel something wasn’t right.

“I could tell then I couldn’t walk right; I felt like my legs weren’t there,” she said. “And I said, ‘Y’all something is wrong with me.’ But I kept on working, went home and kept my grandkids…then finally they took me to the hospital.”

Griffeth says being celebrated as a survivor brings her hope and joy.

“We didn’t do that in Warner Robins, in Houston County, and to come here actually and see the support—it was awesome,” she said.