a stroke survivor story

Before I begin, let me say that compared to the alternative, I would choose this life; however, I must be honest enough to say how much I hate my "new" existence. 8 out of 10 days, it seems that I have no noticeable problems. But, the 1 or 2 days when I do have problems: look out! The last couple days, for example, I have been ready for bed by 5:30. My wife does not get home from work until 5...so we have had exactly :30 of good time. After that I am not worth anything: I am tired, I am spacey, I am weak; to make it short, I feel sorry for Laura. I know that she just wants to spend time as a family, but I get tired so easily anymore. I know that I can do some things to prevent this feeling: I can just rest more during the day. Well, that is easier said than done. This morning, for example, I woke up at 4:00 and then could not get back to sleep. So, I just stayed up. When it came time to sleep, I just could not force myself to sleep. I wound up not getting to sleep until 4:oo ...

I was able to provide the local radio station with an interview about my stroke, and the book, "Living the Life of a miracle." Thanks to Dr. Bob Leonard for allowing me the opportunity to speak and to tell about my events. IN DEPTH: Do You Believe in Miracles? Pastor Jim Mead

I told my wife that I am not sure if this is something I should be worried about or not; I have periodic numbness in my left heel. It does not last for more than a few seconds, but it was occurring about every 2 weeks or so, but now it appears to happen more frequently (perhaps 2 or 3 times each day). The numbness does not last a long time, and it does not extend outside of the heel on my left foot, so I am not sure if it is progressive weakening of the nerves, or if it is totally unrelated to my stroke. Because of my history, the nurse at the VA told me to go to the ER to have it checked out if it really starts to bother me. Right now, it is just a nuisance, really, and it does not bother me much. I guess I will just have to see what happens.

If you are interested in buying a copy of "Living the Life of a Miracle", there is now a paypal checkout button on my blog, astrokestory.blogspot.com. Copies may also be ordered at your local bookstore, through amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com. Thanks.

I am excited to announce that my books are now available at amazon.com. You cna find them at: http://www.amazon.com/Living-Life-Miracle-James-Mead/dp/0983196117/ref=pd_rhf_p_img_1 I am very excited about it; I am finally done with this chapter of my life and now I am wondering about some other things. For the time being, I think I will just be content with this! Praise the Lord, it is DONE!

I must say that it looks great. I will have some people look over it to make sure that there are no corrections that need to be made, but, assuming that everything is okay, it should only take a few weeks to get the final product. This is a very exciting time for me. Again, if you are interested in buying a copy, please let me know.

As I near the end of the process for publishing my book, "Living the Life of a Miracle", Hannah Crawford, my editor, asked a very good question: Do I just want to do word of mouth advertising or do I want to hire a publicist that will arrange book signings, speaking engagements, etc. for me. If I hire a publicist, does that not carry with the connotation that I am willing to do more than just "dabble around" with speaking engagements and book signings? I guess what I am asking, then, is for those of you what have followed my blog for a long time to give me some input: should I hire a publicist or be content with word of mouth advertising? I am truly interested to know your thoughts.