Why Home Is the Only Place I Feel Safe After My Stroke

Home is the only place I feel safe since I had my stroke. It was the place I would always envision before I went to sleep at night while I was in the hospital: me in my lawn chair while my kids played in the front yard and my husband tinkered on one of his toys. It was and always will be my happy place. Even more so now.

This is where I have no judgment. I don’t get stared at for how I walk. I don’t have to repeat myself 20 million times (unless I’m tired). I don’t feel rushed or the need to be “on.” I am comfortable and feel accepted as-is. I’m OK with being me.

Before my stroke, the world was just an extension of what I did at home. It included people who got me and I felt comfortable with. This changed post-stroke. I see the world as a scary place full of scary people. Everyone is in a rush and I can’t keep up, afraid I’ll fall. If I stay home, I feel safe.

Please don’t think of me as a hermit so much as someone who is a homebody. Home is where the people I love are, the place I feel most protected and at ease. So if I don’t come out and “play” as often, this is why.

We want to hear your story. Become a Mighty contributor here.

Thinkstock image by Hemera Technologies