Social worker
1. In-patient
  • Support and Counselling

In general I felt that I had a good attitude, I was focused and very motivated. However:
 
  • I didn't always know what had happened to me.
  • I felt confused and I didn't know what was going on.
  • It took a long time to understand that I had had a stroke and why it had happened to me when I was so young.

Because of all my confusion I am not 100% sure of what my emotions were in the beginning. I know I was not happy about the stroke but I don’t think I understood the other emotions I was feeling at the time. During this time the social worker spent lots of time offering me support and counselling. She also spent lots of time with my parents who had flown down from Johannesburg to be with me.

  • Work

At the time of my stroke I was working as a systems analyser and I had to stop work. The social worker started looking into getting me a Disability Grant so that I could have some income.

2. Out-patient
  • Counselling

When I was discharged from UCT Private Hospital I did not receive ongoing counselling from the social worker. Most of my difficulties were related to my communication issues and I got counselling and support from my speech therapist. During this time the social worker retired and a new one started helping me. After a few months her and the speech therapist decided I needed more intense counselling as I still had problems accepting what had happened to me and my girlfriend of five and a half years suddenly left me a few months after me stroke. They referred me to a psychologist who has been helping me cope with the following:
 
  • Relationship issues
  • Seizures
  • Accepting of my stroke
  • Planning for my future
  • Difficulties going back to work
  • Family back in Johannesburg – support system

  • Disability Grant

There were several problems getting a disability grant. I was meant to get my first payment in October 2004 but this never happened. The social worker helped me to get all the papers work done and spoke to the Department of Health. As I couldn’t do it myself she spent a lot of time talking to them and making sure I knew when I was going to get my money and where to go to get it.