A B.C. teen nearly died after suffering a stroke caused by a blood clot in her brain.
Chelsea Roszell of Vernon was home with her mother on Remembrance Day when her mom, Wendy McGhghy, heard a noise upstairs, followed by a strange crying sound.
She rushed to find her daughter contorting on the ground, as if she was having a seizure.
The 17-year-old was rushed to Vernon Jubilee Hospital, where doctors found she had suffered a life-threatening stroke, not a seizure.
Her condition was so serious there wasn't enough time to airlift her to Vancouver, so she was immediately transferred to Kelowna.
"She was unresponsive when she arrived and was immediately whisked into surgery," says Corrine Erickson, Chelsea's aunt.
"The neurosurgeon was unable to get all of the clot, but the Heparin did its job and stopped its growth so her body could dissolve it."
Erickson says Chelsea is back to almost normal physical health, but her mental health is still very much on the recovery.
"Cognitively, she ranges from toddler to teenager, and thus it is not safe to her leave her alone," says Erickson.
"Chelsea is struggling with finding the right words for things, but she is improving with determination and the help of two speech therapists."
Chelsea was discharged from hospital on Nov. 27, and her mother is staying at home with her full time.
"She scored at less than one per cent of other kids her age in all aspects of her neuropsychological testing, which includes reading, writing, math, spelling, problem solving, reasoning and memory," says her mother.
"There are significant deficits in basically every area, but I am optimistic that she will continue to recover at an amazing pace, and in a year she will be at the point that no one would ever know."
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help Chelsea's family cover the cost of her medical expenses, since she isn't eligible for adult stroke programs and there are no pediatric ones for her to access.
