Most Strokes Give a Warning. Most of Us Miss It.

Four years ago, my father picked my kids up from school. When he got home, he lay down and said he wasn’t feeling well. My mom wanted to call the paramedics right away. He told her not to. It was probably something he ate.

Two days later, she convinced him to go for a check-up anyway.

The doctor said he’d had a heart attack. He was admitted immediately. When they ran the full tests, they found that three out of four of his heart’s arteries were 90% blocked. A few days later, he had a triple bypass surgery.

My mom’s insistence — two days late — saved his life. He just celebrated his 80th birthday in April.

I think about this every time I write about warning signs. Not because heart attacks and strokes are the same thing, but because the behavior is identical. The symptom that feels minor. The explanation that sounds reasonable. The decision to wait and see. That waiting is where the damage happens — in both.

May is Stroke Awareness Month. Strokes are the fifth leading cause of death in the …