Central Oregon Daily News presents: How to spot a stroke with tips from Stroke Awareness Oregon

< Back to News

Bend, OR – October 16, 2024 Stroke Awareness Oregon is excited to announce its November BEFAST Awareness Campaign. This campaign, slated for November 11-18th is aimed at educating communities about stroke signs, prevention, and the importance of early medical intervention. Stroke is the leading cause of disability worldwide and the 4th leading cause of death in the United States, but timely action can save lives and improve outcomes.

The BEFAST acronym helps individuals quickly recognize the most common signs of stroke,
promoting prompt response in the critical moments when medical care is most effective.

BEFAST Warning Signs:
Balance – Sudden loss of balance or coordination
Eyes – Blurred or double vision, or sudden vision loss
Face – Drooping on one side of the face
Arms – Weakness or numbness in one arm
Speech – Slurred or garbled speech or difficulty speaking
Time – Call 911 immediately if any symptoms appear

“Every second counts when it comes to stroke,” said Libby Hawley, BEFAST coordinator] of Stroke Awareness Oregon. “Through our BEFAST campaign, we hope to empower communities with the tools they need to recognize stroke signs and take swift action. With greater awareness, we can improve outcomes and save lives.”

During November 11-18th, Stroke Awareness Oregon will distribute informational materials, and partner with local businesses and healthcare providers to reach as many people as possible with the life-saving BEFAST information. Key activities will include:

  • Distribution of BEFAST cards: Volunteers will be distributing thousands of BEFAST cards throughout Central Oregon to promote awareness and fast response times.
  • Fundraising Initiatives: Donations raised during the campaign will support stroke survivor resources and community outreach programs.

Stroke Awareness Oregon invites individuals, families, and organizations to get involved by participating as distribution volunteers or offering their businesses, churches, and schools as locations to share BEFAST information and help spread the word.

“By raising awareness about stroke, we can all play a part in preventing disabilities and saving lives,” Stroke Awareness Education Coordinator Kate Eskew added.

For more information on the campaign, to volunteer for BEFAST or to make a donation, visit www.strokeawarenessoregon.org or contact Joey Drucker at 541-323-5641.

Become a STROKE CHAMPION for only $18 per month!

JOIN TODAY

Story Preview | A DRIVING FORCE – Alesha Goodman

by Jake Sheaffer

“I once threw a canister of my supplement powder at the wall and dented it. That’s something I can’t imagine ever doing before my stroke, but it’s just another part
of my recovery to work on.”

______________________________

On an early October weekend in 2019, Alesha Goodman and her longtime boyfriend Drew hiked over 50 miles of rugged desert landscape in the Ochoco National Forest in Central Oregon. They were on a nine-day hunting trip they’d been planning for months. While Drew streaked up the steep slopes of sagebrush and loose rock, Alesha tarried behind breathing heavily, fighting the searing pain radiating from the base of her skull. An active thirty-four-year-old who frequented local gyms, walked her dog daily, and hiked on weekends, Alesha never suspected the severe neck pain and nausea she’d had for the past week and a half were signs of an impending stroke. And not just one stroke, but two. Two potentially fatal strokes that would occur within an hour of each other the day after she returned from the Ochocos.

An only child, Alesha was close to her parents and her grandmother who lived on her parents’ property later in life. As a kid, she delivered newspapers in her Bend, OR neighborhood, and in her spare time, she wrote children’s books for fun and read voraciously, prompting close friends to refer to her as a “living encyclopedia of odd information.”

On the Monday morning after she got home, Alesha sat in traffic at a parkway off -ramp, still in discomfort from the neck pain and the nausea. She had new symptoms, too, dizziness and feeling faint. Regardless of the pain, she readied herself for work, but she had an uneasy feeling about her job.

Over the weekend, Alesha had received multiple text messages from her employer, a jewelry company in Central Oregon, about an issue with her company email and password, but with no cell reception, she couldn’t respond to her manager’s concerns. After searching through Alesha’s desk for her email password and not finding it, but instead finding an important legal document she’d already dealt with but had not yet disclosed to her boss, the company hired a specialist to get around the digital safeguards. That day, Alesha was let go from her position.

Purchase the Book to Learn More About Alesha’s Journey!