TAMPA, Fla. - Christian Daigle, a Clearwater native, remembers when his life changed.
Early stroke diagnosis
The backstory:
"I was bouncing on a trampoline," Daigle said. "I instantly felt my right side freeze up like this, and then I fell over."
Daigle, just seven years old at the time, was having a stroke.
But day by day and then year by year, Daigle got by.
Daigle lived every day to the fullest, finding hobbies and achieving his goals in snorkeling, driving, graduating, joining the Coast Guard Auxiliary and fixing cars.
Today, Daigle is 24.
Movement returns
What they're saying:
"I typically don't remember what it's like using two hands, so I'm so used to using my one hand," Daigle said. "So, I guess that tells you everything."
But now his right arm can move again.
"I'm able to straighten it out to my side, [almost] like my left hand," Daigle said.
Implanted in Daigle’s chest is a device called a Vivistim.
"Whenever I swipe this little magnet over it [it works]," Daigle said.
How a Vivistim device works
Dig deeper:
A Vivistim is a Tic Tac box-sized wire that connects to the vagus nerve, which is a key link between the brain and the rest of the body.
Courtesy: Vivistim
It is FDA-approved and stimulates the nerve after Daigle swipes, allowing for limbs and fingers to function again, even decades after a stroke.
"I am wishing to swap my car over to manual," Daigle said, "which will be quite exciting for me, because this will be the first manual [car] I've ever driven."
Recovery journey
On Friday, Daigle spoke at Tampa General Hospital's retreat for stroke survivors, which was focused on recovery and life after a stroke.
Daigle highlighted Vivistim, which Dr. David Rose says is indeed a major advancement, especially because the surgery is relatively simple.
"We've tried various things for chronic stroke, which didn't really have much success," Rose said. "This is finally showing something that seems almost too good to be true."
When it comes to strokes though, the biggest challenge is still getting patients to the hospital quickly, in the way Daigle was so many years ago.
"There's no elephant sitting on your chest like there is a heart attack," Rose said. "For a stroke, it's painless. Usually half the body goes weak or numb, slurred speech. People think, ‘Oh, I slept on my arm funny.’ They're in denial."
The elephant in the room for Daigle is that life is slowly changing.
"Honestly, I have no words for it," Daigle said.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from medical case notes and personal presentations delivered by a stroke survivor and a doctor at a Tampa General Hospital rehabilitation conference on Friday.