Franciscan Health Rehabilitation team helps stroke patient get back on track

Following a routine blood draw in August 2024, Charity Dehmer walked back to her car to drive home, just as she had done numerous times before.

That is when she began to feel like something may be wrong. First, her left arm felt heavy, but she thought it was just from the blood draw.

As she began driving, the Westfield resident felt her arm continue to get heavier. She convinced herself to drive back to the hospital, sit a minute and get out of the car to see if fresh air would help.

Upon entering the hospital, she became more convinced that something was wrong.

The 47-year-old had suffered a stroke.

After a CT scan, it was determined she also suffered two prior strokes that went undetected. After a five-day hospital stay, the real work began as she tried to re-learn everyday tasks to ‘get her life back.’ Working in the technology field and being a married mother of four, including a toddler, Dehmer was used to always operating at a fast pace, which was not possible following her stroke.

After chatting with her friend, who also had a brain injury and is now an advocate for those who have suffered brain injuries, Dehmer learned about the rehabilitation team at Franciscan Health. Led by Dr. Sachin Mehta, the rehab team began to formulate a plan to help Dehmer continue to heal, with Allison Speath as her neuro occupational therapist and Teresa Cochran as her speech therapist.

“Allison and Teresa have been crucial in my stroke recovery journey,” Dehmer said. “Their support has been transformative by working in tandem to ensure my recovery is progressing and giving me tools and strategies which help me to get back to ‘normal’ life post-stroke.”

Rehab began about a week after she was discharged from the hospital. For the first few months, Dehmer would go to therapy sessions twice a week, working on speech, eyesight and various motor skills and has since graduated to once a week therapy.

“Allison was able to identify an issue I hadn’t been able to communicate articulately at the time, that my eyes weren’t working as they had pre-stroke,” Dehmer said. “Through her evaluations, she was able to confirm my eyes had been impacted by my stroke and set me on a path for recovery and success.”

Prior to having her stroke, Dehmer thought the only effects of a stroke were just physical such as having trouble walking. The team at Franciscan also helped Dehmer recover mentally and emotionally from her stroke.

“I was just telling Teresa and Allison recently that I don’t know the state of the relationships I would have, without their help,” Dehmer said. “I don’t know that I would be working right now without them. The truest, most honest thing I can say is they gave me my life back. And it’s probably better than it was before.”

Dehmer will be attending Franciscan’s Stroke Camp in July in West Harrison, Ind. She said she is excited for what she can learn at the camp and the opportunity to share with others who are on the same journey as she is. Click here to register for Stroke Camp.

“The thing about brain injury is that every week, you think you’re okay and then you get to the next week and you look back at the prior week and you’re like, ‘Wow, I was really a mess,’” Dehmer said. “I look back to January and I can’t believe how different I am today. And to know that in another few months, I’ll look back to where I am today and probably think the same thing. I am so thankful to everyone at Franciscan for helping me get my life back.”

May is National Stroke Awareness Month and Franciscan Health Indianapolis is ranked No. 1 in Indiana for Stroke Care by Healthgrades.

Click here to learn more about Stroke Rehabilitation at Franciscan Health.