Stroke Victims Aren't Always Among the Elderly

Sabin, at 33, had his whole life ahead of him.  He had slaved away as a photographer, paying his dues along with his taxes.  He had elevated his status within the industry, allowing his hard work and professional excellence to build a name for himself.  So, finally able to afford a home and a normal life-style for himself, he did the responsible thing and applied for health insurance. 

Sabin was young and healthy, and wasn't able to afford health insurance up to that point in his life. However, now he had to take his success and leverage it into a responsible foundation for the future, which included health insurance. That is when the unthinkable happened. He was struck by one of the most disastrous, and naturally occurring, traumas that can happen to the human body. He suffered a stroke, in the prime of his life, and his newly acquired health-care coverage was still in its grace period - he had no health-care coverage.

For Sabin Orr, having a stroke at age 33 was only the beginning...

The day that Sabin Orr received his letter of acceptance for his health insurance provider application was supposed be a happy milestone in his life. It was supposed to be the first day of the rest of his life where he had peace of mind that his health-care coverage was secure. Getting sick was supposed to no longer be an expensive venture. Unfortunately it turned out not to be the case. This was due to the fact that it was also the day that Sabin, at age 33, would also suffer a life-changing stroke.

At age 33, having a stroke is not even a thought in the mind of the average person. It is something that you hear about on television, occurring to a grandparent, or to an elderly friend or neighbor. However, the thought of having a stroke yourself not only unthinkable, but an impossibility. At this age, most of us are beginning to see the fruits of our labors. We are buying homes, having children, paying off school loans, and finally buying items of luxury instead of items of necessity. Things which were out of our reach as young adults are finally becoming a possibility. In fact, the possibilities within our lives are growing along with our successes.

For Sabin, this is where his mind was at on this fateful day. He too was focused on his own professional successes. His thoughts were upon ensuring his clients were happy, and that he would continue to provide them with the highest quality when it came to his work. His mind was occupied with photo shoots, appointments, daily tasks within his life, friends, and family. However, beneath all of these normal thought processes, his brain was about to experience the most traumatic experience that a brain can experience throughout its entire existence. Sabin was about to have a stroke.

Sabin was in the prime of his life as a healthy young man. Sabin frequently played golf and exercised regularly. He did occasionally have a steak or a hamburger in his diet, but ate a well balanced diet overall. All of Sabin's friends and family would describe him as extremely healthy, and he was. With him paying so much attention to his body, and the food that he ate, he was by far bypassing the average American when it came to being physically fit and healthy. So, what went wrong?

Truthfully, to this day, we don't know. The day of Sabin's stroke, he actually managed to drive himself to the hospital. The entire experience was excruciating, even for a young and healthy man like Sabin. The fact that he managed to overcome all of the symptoms that the stroke was causing him to experience, and to get himself to the hospital in once piece, is a miracle in of itself. His motivation not to call an ambulance - the cost. Upon arriving, he was barely able to communicate to the ER nurse, and she was having a problem with properly diagnosing his symptoms because of it. Throughout the night, he underwent a barrage of tests which eventually led to an MRI showing the lesions that his stroke had created in his brain. However, as clear as the result was, the cause of his stroke was nowhere to be found.

The next few weeks were trying. He was dealing with the long-term physical affects of the stroke, and was told that it would take six to nine months of "re-training" his brain. His motor skills, and speech were affected and were at only a fraction of their ability pre-stroke. With the continued head-aches and pains coming and going, it was imperative to find the cause of the stroke to see if there was a viable solution. He went to numerous medical facilities, and underwent every test under the sun which would show any indication of abnormalities which can cause a stroke. The end result - not a single doctor could identify anything that could have caused Sabin's stroke.

This was not the only problem. Throughout Sabin's trials and tribulations, yet another shadow was hulking in the corner - growing larger with every hospital visit, consult, and test. In the back of Sabin's mind, he was wondering how he was going to pay for all of this. The stroke had occurred before his newly acquired medical coverage took affect; the stroke and all medical costs associated with it were all now categorized as a pre-existing condition. All of Sabin's hard work and effort to put him to where he was was being undone right before his very eyes. It was completely unclear to him how he was going to be able to cope with the growing costs, and the steps he would need to take in order to repay them. Thoughts of moving back in with his parents, or moving in with his brother, were flashing into his mind.

However, there was something else brewing which Sabin was unaware of. When Sabin notified his family that he was in the hospital, they immediately called family and some of his closest friends so that they could visit him. Those people notified other friends of his - recent friends all the way back to friends from high school and grade school. The sudden and devastating impact that the stroke had made upon his life had also created something else. A wave of concern, fueled by all of the positive impact that he had made upon others over the duration of his life, was spreading across the country. This wave of friends, having heard the news of Sabin's plight, all had one question in common - What can I do to help?

This common question amongst all of his friends caused a chain-reaction. Sabin's friends began collaborating amongst themselves, with his family, and even later on with Sabin, regarding what they could do to help. Sabin began thinking about his situation, and did something truly remarkable - he thought about how he could help other young stroke victims, and other people suffering life changing illnesses without insurance, and began talking to friends and family about starting a non-profit organization to do so. Sabin, suffering a stroke and with a mountain of health-care debt in front of him, was worried about helping others! Friends and family expressed their admiration of his unselfish desires. However, they also reminded him that his problems needed to be solved first - it was necessary to get Sabin back to the state his life was in before suffering a stroke without health insurance. Then, once that was accomplished, they could turn their energies towards helping Sabin to help others. This was important because there would then be proof that it could be done. If Sabin could have his life returned to normal - then it could be done for others as well!

Several fund-raising events were scheduled and held across the country. Friends were helping Sabin to get himself organized so that he could keep his own medical history and progress with solving his health and health-care issues via a blog - "Sabin's Stroke of Genius". This allowed him to keep all of his friends and family updated on his progress, as well as to educate others regarding his plight. It also allowed friends and family to send people somewhere in order for them to make donations towards paying down Sabin's growing medical bills. With everyone's combined efforts, so far almost $7,000.00 has been raised through Sabin's Stroke of Genius website, and around $13,000.00 was raised through the various fund-raisers organized by Sabin's friends and family. However, with initial estimations of his total medical costs being around $100,000.00, there is still a great deal of money yet to be raised. And, while $100,000.00 may seem like a huge amount of money, there is still hope. If 10,000 people can give $10, or if over 100,000 people can donate only $1, Sabin's medical bills can be paid outright!

Sabin is continuing his fight to overcome his stroke and working towards solving his health-care cost issues.

While only less than 20% of Sabin's medical costs have been raised by family and friends, Sabin is keeping a positive outlook for the future. He is now able to work again, which allows him to begin making contributions himself towards his medical bills, not to mention being able to pay for his normal costs of living again. As a photographer, his job may not seem stressful to some people, but he is still finding himself extremely fatigued by the end of his work-day. Yet, he does not allow this to deter him from doing what he knows is right - and that is to help himself before letting others to provide help for him. He is earning his right to have a bright future through sheer hard-work and determination!

Sabin's sole source of income is through his work as a photographer. Sabin gets hired as a private photographer to do photo shoots for magazines, marketing firms, businesses, or individuals. His portfolio can be found at Sabin Orr Photography. Be sure to pass on the website to any business owners that are looking for a photographer's services. As you can see, he is extremely versatile when it comes to the needs of his clients. He can assist you with whatever specific project you have in mind, or can even offer his services in regards to assisting regarding the creative aspect of your needs. While Sabin is currently a Las Vegas resident, he is definitely capable of working with clients all over the country.

Sabin's long term goals? Once Sabin is able to conquer his current health and health-care cost issues, he plans on turning Sabin's Stroke of Genius into a tool for others to use in the same way. He would like to commemorate his success by starting a non-profit organization, allowing him and his family to help others with the same or similar issues which he is experiencing. Hopefully, he will be able to ensure that the next person who goes through a life-changing illness without health-care coverage will have needed help, as not everyone will have family and friends capable of stepping up to assist them. He will continue to fight the good fight, and showing others that they can deal with and conquer the biggest of problems that life may throw at them!

Be sure to share your own personal healthcare nightmare, and show your support for Sabin by posting your thoughts and feelings.