Cheleatha Lott felt a bit ‘off’. Fast forward a few days and she woke up feverish and was trembling uncontrollably. After an uneventful hospital stay, Cheleatha went about her normal routine. But just days later, she suddenly noticed her speech was slurred.
Cheleatha later woke up in the Texas Medical Center to staff asking her questions to assess her coherence and memory. She remembers, “It felt like I was in a whole other state, like an out-of-body experience almost. Nothing felt normal.”
Cheleatha had suffered a stroke. “I went from working full time to this,” said Cheleatha. “I had to take it all in because they also told me my whole left side was paralyzed. I tried to move my left hand and that’s when it all hit me.”
She stayed at the hospital for about a month before heading to a rehabilitation facility; however, after a couple weeks, she realized the facility was set up more like a retirement home.
“They weren’t really getting me up and working with me to rehab,” she explained. “That’s when my family found Nexus Neurorecovery Center and told me they’d be able to help me reach my goals.”
Nearly two months after her stroke, Cheleatha transferred to Nexus. She could just barely wiggle her fingers at that point. Her first day on campus the staff had her sitting up in a chair for the first time and she participated in her admissions conference.
“I told everyone I wanted to leave the facility walking, and by June 21st when I completed inpatient rehab, I was able to walk,” said Cheleatha.
She shared how encouraged the CNAs, therapists, teachers, and entire staff made her feel encouraged. Even the camaraderie with other residents helped her shift her mindset.
“I was a bit shocked at first, but once I began to accept and trust the process, nothing could stop me,” she said. “After just one week, my family said they saw improvement.”
Cheleatha participated in a variety of physical and occupational therapies, activities, and group classes. She shared that the staff gave her tools to work through the injury and her feelings about all that had happened to her. She remembers physical therapy really preparing her, saying, “Looking back, they were strengthening me the whole time and getting me ready to stand, then take my first step, then walk.”
She also shared how important occupational therapy was in getting her back to feeling like her old self. She said, “Before the stroke, I loved my makeup. My therapist taught me how to apply my lashes again, and that gave me a boost of confidence.”
Cheleatha progressed from the New Genesis home all the way to Churchill, moving to more independent environments as she continued getting better. Today, her family and friends say they would never know something had happened to her.
“Through everything, I had time to reflect,” she said. “I came out a different person, not just physically. I am a parole officer, and in that role, I’m used to giving instructions. But this whole journey from illness to rehabilitation to now, the roles were reversed and I had to trust others.”
