The inspiring story of Katherine Wolf

 'Having a Stroke as a New Mom Changed Everything, but I'm Treating It Like a Gift' is the title of the article I read and the video I watched by Kelly Bryant. In this video and article, it explains the journey of Katherine Wolf before, during, and after a brain stem stroke due to a rupture of an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in her brain. In this video and article, Katherine and her husband talk about many ways their life changed after the stroke. Her stroke occurred at 26 years old and 6 months after she had her first baby. There were many struggles for Katherine after this stroke, but the hardest thing to deal with for her was not being able to take care of her baby. Many basic functions were impacted in her life such as her vision, hearing, the ability to feed herself, and her mobility. To further my knowledge, I researched her condition and referred to my lecture notes to get a better understanding as to what happened in her brain. I learned that an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is when blood vessels are kinda tangled up and it causes problems with blood flow. It can happen in other parts of the body but it most commonly the brain or spinal cord. I choose this material for my assignment because I have mostly heard of older people having strokes but not many people who are young. I am also fascinated at the fact that Katherine survived such a severe stroke in her brain stem, so I wanted to learn more about her affects long term and what that journey was like for her emotionally. I gained more of an understanding about how support for the client can impact recovery. It is very important to have a strong support system behind a client because without it, it can make recovery a lot harder. This video does a great job at showing her struggles and victories throughout the recovery process and who was around for those moments. For an inspirational and motivating story, I highly recommend that you watch and read about Katherine Wolf. She made the best of her situation and continues to live in the present instead of dwelling on the past. She has two healthy boys and works full time for her non-profit organization called Hope Heals. This is a faith-based nonprofit organization that has a goal of restoring hope to people with a wide range of disabilities. They provide a safe and healing environment for families in need. Katherine Wolf inspires others every day to keep moving and to stay positive no matter their situation.

Click here to access the story:  Katherine's story

 

References:

Barber, G., Birnbaum, R., Taublieb, P., Kohn, A., Silverstein, M., & Katims, J. (2012). The vow. United States; Screen Gems.

Lancaster, S. (2021, July). Acquired Brain Injury. Session 7. Memphis; Tennessee.

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2019, May 17). Brain AVM (arteriovenous malformation). Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/brain-avm/symptoms-causes/syc-20350260.