Elise Mathy and Louis Gustin have both had a stroke. Elise suffered an
ischaemic stroke in 2017 at the age of 27 and as a result has hemiparesis on her
left side. Louis had a stroke in 2015, when he was 25, and has right hemiparesis and aphasia.
Louis never lost courage or hope. He has been fighting for over three
years, and continues to do so today. Little by little, he realised that dialogue
is the essence of mankind and that communication defines a human being. After
many years of struggle, Louis has put his life back together. Today he can
communicate very well indeed, and now he wants to communicate with others
across Europe; about strokes, disability, and how they are managed in Europe.
When tragedy struck, Elise had not finished her studies in medicine, but
the stroke didn’t stop her – it simply set her back. She continues her
rehabilitation in order to regain more of the motor functions that are
essential for her (regaining movement in her left arm). 2019 will be a crucial
year for Elise, because two years after the stroke that knocked her life off
course – she intends to finish her medical studies.
Both Elise
and Louis have strength; the strength to fight for what they want most to be
#UpAgainAfterStroke; for Louis to regain his speech and for Elise to regain the
use of her left arm.
And together they
have a plan. For about a year they have been working on a project that meets
their shared goals for discovery and adventure. But it’s not just fun and
games. They want to share the story of
what happened to them, talk about what opportunities for prevention exist, how
their debilitating effects of stroke are treated, as well as about the pressing
need for rehabilitation using all the research currently available to
neuroscience.
The couple want to travel across Europe to meet aphasia and stroke associations,
to share their stories and raise awareness.
Their vehicle will also be their bedroom. What better than a van? But an adapted one, because Louis uses his
left arm and Elise uses her right. They plan to document their journey
through a video and book, and the journey will culminate in a conference in
France, where they’ll make recommendations for improvements in stroke treatment
and care across Europe.
Through their
journey they also aim to challenge perceptions about disabilities and about life
after stroke.
If you would like to follow Louis and
Elise’s incredible project and get involved in supporting their #UpAgainAfterStroke
journey please visit www.sadapter.eu or https://www.facebook.com/sadapterEU/
