gmhTODAY 18 gmhToday Feb March 2018 | Page 61

my mom, put her in the car, and drove her to St. Louise Hospital,” Kassi recounted, tears springing to her eyes. Doctors put Konni in a six-day medical coma. Her three sisters flew in, and Kassi, her brother Kyle, and her father John swooped in to be with Konni the entire time. “She didn’t stay one night by herself,” Kassi said with a big smile. Konni nodded. “My whole family are such good caregivers.” Tearfully, Kassi added, “We learned it from her. She brought us up to be like that.” Konni gave credit to her husband as well. “Sometimes men aren’t made that way, but my husband is. He’s a crazy good husband.” She credits John with taking care of all the healthcare issues and making modifications to their home to accommodate her, all while holding down his full-time job with Apple. The event was “terrifying” for the family, at first, Kassi said. “We didn’t know what it was going to be like when she woke up.” Konni woke to find she had lost most of the strength in her neck and head, as well as her left side. She had to re-learn how to swallow and sit upright, and then eventually to walk. Given all that, she has been able to recover remarkably quickly. “All my therapists have told me it’s a good thing I was in really good shape, from doing CrossFit all these years. It helped me to recover a lot faster than a lot of stroke patients normally would.” The location of the stroke also fortunately missed her speech and memory centers, so her recovery efforts have been largely physical. Though, of course, there have been emotional implications of the event. Sorrow at having to put travel plans on hold, and fear that she would not be strong enough for important family events weighed her down at times. However, the goal-oriented Konni, as Kassi described her, focused on her recovery with one focal point in mind. GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018 gmhtoday.com 61