Help Me, My Husband Had a Stroke: A Practical Guide for Caregivers

By Nancy Mansfield

Help Me, My Husband Had a Stroke is a practical, clear, and encouraging source of information for caregivers of stroke and TBI survivors. It is a road-map for what to do next. Specifically directed to spouses of stroke survivors, it is invaluable for anyone caring for a loved one with a life-changing injury. It contains concise information, organized chronologically from the time of injury through full recovery. Contains downloadable spreadsheets for tracking information. Mansfield provides information about applying for benefits, returning to work, and more, while addressing with empathy some of the enormous emotional losses that loved ones experience.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Mar 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781483566627

Book preview

Chapter 1

You Are Not Alone!

As you start this journey, I want you to know you are not alone. At first it seemed to me that women in their forties whose husbands have had a stroke had a pretty small peer group, but it turns out that isn’t so. In the U.S., about 700,000 people a year have a stroke. Worldwide, over 20 million people per year have a stroke, and over 25% of strokes end in death. REJOICE: Your husband is a survivor! And he has plenty of company! That means you do too.

There are people who have been where you are, experienced the challenges you are facing, and are willing to talk with you, help you, share with you, and support you in ways you can’t even imagine yet. Most people who are in your life now probably haven’t walked this path, but they can be your biggest helpers and cheerleaders nonetheless. If you are like me, there will be new people who come into your life at this point and provide help, encouragement, and genuine friendship. Some of the new friendships that have resulted from this are blessings that were beyond my prior imagining. You may meet others who have been through this with a loved one, so they may be especially sensitive to what you need. In addition, you will be working with a whole host of professionals who have spent a lifetime helping people just like your husband, and they have interacted with stroke survivors’ spouses too. So even if things look dark at this moment, remember: your husband is a survivor, you are not alone, you still have blessings, and believe it or not, more are on the way.

Chapter 2

What to do – RIGHT AWAY!

First and Foremost: Contact the Social Security Office!

Hopefully your husband’s stroke is relatively minor and he will be able to return to normal activities, including work, before terribly long. However, whether his stroke is minor or life altering, it is absolutely vital that you contact the Social Security office right away to get record of this event on file.

Here’s why: there is a 5-month waiting period before disability benefits are paid out. The five-month waiting period is to ensure that benefits aren’t paid to people who do not have long-term disabilities. During the first few months of stroke recovery, (and during the first few months of recovery from many other illnesses or accidents) a great deal can change. Social Security disability benefits can be paid only after someone has been disabled continuously throughout a period of five full calendar months. Therefore, Social Security disability benefits are paid beginning with the sixth full month after the date the approved disability began. Your husband is not entitled to benefits for any month in the waiting period.

The counting for the five months starts from the day the disability/event is reported – not from the date the stroke occurred. Call immediately to get the clock started. Of course, the hope is that your husband’s condition will be minor enough that you will never need to actually make a Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) application later, but should you need to, you will already be part way through the waiting period. At a time when monetary concerns can be substantial, this can be huge.

Go to the Social Security website. Take a look at what is there. You can apply online, but I called my local office. It took a while to get through on the phone, but when I did the people there were quite helpful.

Chapter 3

Check Coverage

Beyond Medical Insurance

Your husband may have private disability coverage, or he may have some with his employer. If you aren’t certain, check the files at home to see what you can locate and call his employer to see if he carries any there. If your records aren’t easy to find, you may want to call your insurance agent or investment broker. It is possible that the one of these individuals sold your husband disability insurance and can help you process a claim.