What Runs In Your Family?

Discussing what medical conditions run in your family is not always a popular conversation - but it is an important one! The reason for this post is to help encourage you to open the door to discussing medical issues that run in your family. Some things may be of minor significance and some things may be of major significance, so it's important to sort it all out.

May is National Stroke Awareness Month. That may not mean anything to you. It didn't mean anything to me until some years ago when it hit home and affected my mother and completely changed all of our lives. Prior to that I never thought to ask her about her medical history, or the medical history of her family.

As I gathered some family data recently, I began remembering that my grandmother also suffered a stroke which contributed to her death. Another family member was trying to convince me that wasn't the case but I could vividly remembering hearing that she suffered a stroke when I was a kid. I began going through my family papers and just as I thought, stroke was a major contributor to her death. "That's ironic" I thought, but I didn't think much of it again until I stumbled upon a copy of my great grandmother's death certificate. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that she also died as a result of having a stroke! What are the odds that great grandmother, grandmother, and mother would all succumb to the same disease! This was no coincidence to me!

I began asking other relatives what they knew of strokes in the family and other contributory causes that could put us at a higher risk. No one seemed to know and the people who could really answer these questions are unfortunately no longer here. Now that I have this information I can share with other family members so that we know what to look out for and try to prevent the same. If you're interested in learning more about stroke and stroke prevention, National Stroke Association is a great resource to look into.

I hope that you will take time today to discuss your family's health - it could save a life!

Happy Living! :-)