Celina McMichael of Kennebunk has survived five strokes, the first 24 years ago and the last two years ago. She’s made it her goal to make people aware of stroke symptoms and is running the Boston Marathon to raise money for research and education through Tedy’s Team. Tammy Wells photo
KENNEBUNK – Celina McMichael is fit. She exercises, she is a runner, and she keeps proper nutrition in mind.
McMichael grew up snowboarding in Vermont. She teaches yoga and until a couple of years ago was a classroom teacher. These days, she works at a transitional home for young adults as a therapeutic residential advisor, helping young people 18 to 25 integrate into the community.
No one would know, unless she said so, that McMichael is a stroke survivor. In fact, she has had five of them, starting 24 years ago, when she was 19. There is no history of stroke in her family.
She is married to Jason McMichael and is the mother of two daughters, 19 and 14, and a son, 5. The family has lived in Kennebunk since 2005.
She has no visible deficits from the strokes.
Come April, McMichael will be running the Boston Marathon as part of the nonprofit Tedy’s Team, named for Tedy Bruschi, who suffered a stroke in February 2005 at age 31, just weeks after winning his third Super Bowl with the New England Patriots. He and his family established Tedy’s Team to raise money for stroke research and education.
As of Monday, Feb. 13, McMichael has raised $7,900 of her $10,000 goal.
She is running to raise funds and educate people about stroke and the signs and symptoms one may be imminent.
Her last stroke came in 2021; it was one she was not supposed to have.
There have been smaller episodes and symptoms over the years, since the first two strokes when she was 19 years old, and innumerable medical tests to try and nail down a cause. Then, in 2019, came two more full blown strokes, producing classic systems of a drooping face, a left hand that did not work, swallowing issues, and difficulty breathing. She recovered quickly, and doctors later closed a hole in her heart, called a PFO, in November that year. Apparently, everyone is born with a hole in their heart, and most but not all, close on their own. Doctors at that time felt the hole was the reason for her strokes, she said.
McMichael remembers being told by her cardiac surgeon that once the hole was closed, she would never have another stroke – but she did.
“In 2021 I was on the mountain,” in Vermont, with family members, she said. They had just had lunch and were walking back to go snowboarding when she felt the symptoms. She was careful because she knew she could fall. She was behind the others, and reached out and grabbed her sister-in-law, a nurse.
Her speech was impacted during the stroke.
“I fought it; I kept trying to make myself talk,” she said.
McMichael recovered. These days, she is taking medication, things are good, and she feels she is stabilized. It has been two years since her last stroke.
McMichael has some frustration, pointing out that over the years, physicians have not always listened. She remembers keeping track of the symptoms she would have around her menstrual cycle – auras, migraines, numbness in the face and felt they were connected, and she worried they were warning signs that a more full-blown stroke could occur. She said she voiced those concerns to medical personnel over the years, who told her they were common symptoms women had during their cycles.
McMichael has been a runner since she was 18. She has run other marathons and while she has previously qualified for Boston, this will be her first time running the April 17 marathon.
She has been training for the marathon for about 16-20 weeks, undertaking a combination of strength training and running 30 to 60 miles a week.
Next month, on March 28 at 6 p.m., McMichael will speak about her medical condition and stroke awareness at Graves Memorial Library in Kennebunkport.
According to the American Stroke Association, stroke is a disease that affects the arteries leading to and within the brain. It is the fifth cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the United States. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts, the association noted.
Stroke symptoms include sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg especially on one side of the body; confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech; trouble seeing, walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, and severe headache with no known cause, according to the ASA.
McMichael is serious about bringing awareness, especially to young people, who may believe stroke is something that happens only to older folks. She wants them to be aware of symptoms, and how to navigate and advocate for themselves within the medical system.
“I want 18-45-year-olds to know the symptoms are serious,” McMichael said. “Don’t ignore the symptoms.”
For more information about stroke awareness, McMichael’s stroke history and how to support her on Tedy’s Team, visit https://www.givengain.com/ap/celina-mcmichael-raising-funds-for-tedys-team/#timeline.
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