Is My Stroke a Punishment From God?
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Is My Stroke a Punishment From God?
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Have you ever wondered if your stroke was a punishment from God? Many stroke survivors tell me they believe it. They think the stroke came as payback for something they did in the past, or that it was sent to teach them a lesson.
In this short solo episode I explain why that belief isn't true, and why hanging on to it slows your recovery. If God punished people with strokes, why do so many people who have done terrible things live to 90 without one? I talk about where this kind of religious guilt usually comes from.
It tends to get passed down by an elder, a parent or someone in the community who wanted people to keep showing up at church or temple and didn't know another way to motivate them. I also separate guilt from responsibility. Alcohol, drugs, diet and inactivity can all play a part in a stroke.
Changing those habits is responsibility. Punishing yourself for them is guilt. My stroke happened at 37, when a blood vessel I was born with burst. I was also smoking and drinking at the time. I changed how I lived, but I didn't carry the guilt, and that decision made room for my recovery.
