Hello, And welcome to the My Flippin Stroke Survivor blog. My name is John Van Deun and I had a stroke in November of 2008. That puts me quite a ways out with no end in sight! Because these years have not been my most favorite and as you might guess these years have been a constant cycle of ups and downs. In the beginning mostly downs. But as the years have gone by the ups have been more and more frequent. Probably due to a change in my outlook on life and my attitude. If you would like to learn more about my stroke journey please visit my blog posts from the header above. 

Who I’d like to be my audience

There are approximately 750,000 stroke survivors every year, the majority of which require physical and/or occupational therapy. The appropriate support equipment to regain functionality is also required. In addition, there is a large unmet need for rehabilitative devices for adults and children. these would allow them to function independently, such as in their home or school environment; without being dependent upon caregivers to carry out activities of daily living (ADLs). For example, the average stroke survivor who requires the use of both upper extremities will often experience loss of dexterity, strength, mobility, and coordination.  This impairment of motor neurons within the brain is a result of the stroke.

Why this blog and store

In light of this, I decided to develop my store and this blog. Mainly to help stroke survivors navigate the tricky journey they’re on post-stroke. It also gives me something creative to do. The blog was created to hopefully be a forum for survivors to interact with me and other survivors to get answers to the questions they have about post-stroke living and coping. Also, I hope to help those survivors that wish they had died from the stroke and let them know what they would be missing if that had happened. 

The store was also created to consolidate Rehabilitation equipment, tools for making activities of daily living (ADL) more doable, and tools for the one-handed. And clothes that make dressing easier.  I even threw in information on how you can make your own blog or store, a good therapy in itself! You don’t need clearance for that!