Senate President Spilka Recovering From ‘Mild Stroke’

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ASHLAND – Senate President Karen Spilka, a Democrat from Ashland, is recovering from a mild stroke.

In an exclusive interview with NBC 10’s Alison King, she said today, December 20, that on November 15, she woke up with a “really bad headache.”

She was supposed to be at the White House that day, by invitation of President Joseph Biden, but did not attend.

She said she went to the hospital and have an MRI.

The MRI revealed based on her doctor’s diagnosis she had a “mild stroke,” the Senator told NBC10 Boston.

“A lot of people have mild strokes” and are not even aware of it,” said Senate President Spilka during the TV interview.

The Senate President said the only symptom she had was a headache.

SOURCE did a phone interview with the Senate President last Wednesday and she sounded healthy and normal. SOURCE talked about ARPA funding and the clean up of the former General Chemical site in Framingham.

The Senate President told NBC 10 that she is expecting a full recovery.

“I’m fine. I’m feeling great,” said Senator Spilka to NBC 10 Boston.

She said she wanted people to know, so they can be aware of symptoms.

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What are the symptoms of a stroke?

Use the letters in F.A.S.T to spot a Stroke, according to American Stroke Association:

• F = Face Drooping – Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. Is the person’s smile uneven?
• A = Arm Weakness – Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
• S = Speech Difficulty – Is speech slurred?
• T = Time to call 911

But the American Stroke Association said other symptoms include:

• NUMBNESS or weakness of face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body
• CONFUSION, trouble speaking or understanding speech
• TROUBLE SEEING in one or both eyes
• TROUBLE WALKING, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• SEVERE HEADACHE with no known cause

This is a developing report and SOURCE will update shortly

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