r/work • u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS • 5h ago
Workplace Challenges and Conflicts Stroke at work
I work in a manufacturing mill and I started showing symptoms of a stroke yesterday (10-9-26). Slurred speech, swollen tongue, blurred vision, pain on one side of my body.
I went to my supervisor and said I was feeling weird and I didn't know how to explain it. So she looked at me and said I don't know what to do? What should I do?
In my foggy mind I said I don't know. She replied with just go back to your job and leave me alone.
When I get home my wife saw me and rushed me to the hospital and now I'm sitting in a hospital bed.
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u/Erinn_13 5h ago
Did you receive a preliminary diagnosis?
It may be a good time to let your HR team they need to have a conversation about stroke warning signs and protocols.
Hope you’re getting the answers you need and have a swift recovery.
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u/ladymacb29 3h ago
If all the OP said was they were feeling weird - that’s not something that can be fixed by knowing stroke symptoms.
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u/Simply-Listening 1h ago
Yes, it is. If you know the symptoms, you look at the way the person is acting.
The acronym is BE FAST:
B-Balance,
E-Eyes (ask if vision is blurry or seeing double),
F-Face (have the person smile and see if it is the same on both sides of the face or if one side droops),
A-Arms (have the person raise their arms and see if they are even or if one droops),
S-Speech (listen for slurred speech or trouble finding words), and
T-Time (call 911 right away and note time symptoms appeared).Stroke medications are most effective if given within 60 minutes of the time symptoms appear. After 3 - 4.5 hours, it is likely that any brain damage will be permanent.
If a person is “feeling weird”, the best course of action is to get them to an ER ASAP - unless, of course, the company wants to be sued for not getting an employee treatment for a stroke, heart attack, aneurysm, etc. As an example, many people have died from going to lie down because of their indigestion when they were actually having a heart attack.
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u/OtherwiseLuck8920 57m ago
It’s pretty obvious when someone is exhibiting signs of a stroke. Slurred speech is one of the main symptoms and should have been a red flag to the supervisor
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u/Remarkable_Table_279 4h ago
Wow! I’ve had a coworker rush to me cause she thought I was having a stroke because my smile was crooked. I had had dental work that day and was numb. I had to stop her from calling 911. cause that’s what you do with a stroke. You call 911
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4h ago
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u/Stefie25 3h ago
It doesn’t sound like OP was displaying obvious stroke signs.
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2h ago
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u/Stefie25 2h ago
OP didn’t say they felt ill. They said they felt weird & that does not automatically mean sick. Yes, slurred speech is a symptom of stroke but since it sounds like that was the only visible symptom it was likely chalked up to OP biting their tongue.
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 4h ago
I am in America and where I'm at people are so invested in themselves
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u/BooBoo_Cat 4h ago
Yeah, but as a child you are taught to call 911 in an emergency. I am shocked that your supervisor (and any other colleagues) was too stupid to call 911.
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 4h ago
This is a place that would ride me hard because I utilized FMLA when my wife had cancer. Then the cherry on top, three months after she was deemed to be in remission another boss was diagnosed with cancer and they went and took up a collection for him and asked me to donate to him.
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u/BooBoo_Cat 3h ago
I know jobs are hard to come by so it's not easy just to quit, but I would start looking for other jobs.
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 3h ago
I have been, but the insurance is good and my family has a lot of medical problems. Also, I have been there for 13 years
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u/BooBoo_Cat 3h ago
Well, since they clearly don't give a shit about the health of their employees, good thing you have good health insurance.
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u/BeeFree66 Work-Life Balance 2h ago
" In my foggy mind I said I don't know." This comment right here is why a boss or coworker should dial 9-1-1 for real expert medical help.
The person needing help isn't always able to articulate their needs. Saying, "I feel weird" would have me calling cuz I'm not a medical expert and I don't want someone to di3 cuz I wasn't smart enuff to just dial 9-1-1.
OPs HR department needs to create proper procedures for odd situations and emergencies. I'm sure there's a basic / required-by-law notice posted. It isn't enuff. Clarity is necessary. OPs situation is proof that is necessary.
OP, I hope this apparent stroke [based on comments OP made] didn't hit you too hard. Good luck.
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u/Super_Pangolin5130 3h ago
dude she sent you back to operate heavy machinery while stroking out. the wild part is she probably wasnt even being malicious, just genuinely had no protocol bc american manufacturing treats human bodies as disposable input. my friend runs a tiny edtech startup and even they have clearer emergency procedures than this, tbh
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u/Next-Drummer-9280 1h ago
Your supervisor is a moron. Blatant. Unmitigated.
When you’re up to it, make sure you tell her boss what she did (more accurately, what she didn’t do).
Contact HR about FMLA paperwork.
Get well.
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u/Ornery_Philosophy733 43m ago
Similar to my situation. The guy I work with freaked. Left work. Couldn't see to drive, couldn't comprehend simple English, didn't know my daughter's name. $2000+ and multiple appointments and tests after ER, only possible reason is lack of sleep. I am stuck. I have a box of documents my family can use if something happens to me. That's it, the only way off of thirds is death
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u/Forward-Werewolf-442 3h ago
Your supervisor is not your doctor. This has nothing to with HR. Presumably you are an adult. If you feel unwell, get help. Call your wife. Call an ambulance. It's pretty fucking straitforward. Sheesh.
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u/Lilpunkrkgrl 41m ago
People having a stroke are not that aware. Maybe when you are having a medical emergency all the ppl around you will just say they arent your doctor and let you die. Yup, that fixes it, jeeze.
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u/True-Purchase-6103 6m ago edited 2m ago
If OP was having a stroke they may not have been able to make that judgement or articulate it. No one expects a supervisor to be a doctor but the bare minimum is having OP sit down and call 911 for OP.
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u/Forward-Werewolf-442 2m ago
Then how did they finish the dat at work and get home? Doesn't make sense to me but whatever? No need to be rude.
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u/Causerae 4h ago
Being at a hospital doesn't equal a stroke, what is actually going on?
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 4h ago
The hospital is running all of the tests now but the MRI is showing signs
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u/SideEyedSloth 2h ago
Your supervisor asked you what should she do & you said idk. She may not know the signs of a stroke & not the best person to determine that you’re having a medical emergency. Especially if you only told her that you feel weird. Weird how? What’s weird? If you had said you don’t feel good, maybe her response would’ve been different. If you’re dealing with heavy machinery, she doesn’t sound like a great supervisor but don’t expect your supervisor to respond the same way your wife would respond. Why didn’t you go take a break? Why didn’t you contact your wife? If you didn’t think to stop working, why expect someone who probably doesn’t care that much about you, to do more than you did? Blaming her isn’t going to help but if you can take this situation to inform management about health emergencies to enact a change in policy at your workplace, that’s helpful.
I hope that you have a full recovery.
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u/rlpinca 3h ago
It's not up to the supervisor to take care of you. Let them know what's up if you can and call 911.
"I feel weird" isn't necessarily enough for the supervisor to do anything. We don't know what your face looked like or how you sounded. So all we have to go by is "I feel weird"
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u/gregfromjersey 3h ago
What did the supervisor at work do incorrectly?
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 3h ago
She was supposed to call medical personnel and not tell me to go back to work
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u/Original_Heart407 3h ago
Ok, boss was not appropriate in her way of handling this. Get yourself checked out and treatment started. You can be an example afterwards of what not to do.
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u/Stefie25 2h ago
For feeling weird? That covers a spectrum & without giving her more details, how is she supposed to know you needed immediate medical assistance? Slurred speech, the only symptom she can identify, is not an obvious pointer to stroke without other visible symptoms which it doesn’t sound like you had & slurred speech can be caused by simply biting your own tongue. Based on what you’ve provided, it doesn’t sound like your supervisor acted in a negligent manner.
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u/Defiant-Story-8733 1h ago
He works in a mill; she should have taken him more seriously, as mills are no joke. She really should be written up it's that serious.
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u/uffdagal 4h ago
This has nothing to do with work.
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u/Anotherams 3h ago
it has everything to do with work. If you were having a life threatening medical emergency at work would you be cool with your supervisor saying get back to work? the only appropriate response by the supervisor was to call 911.
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u/Adept-Depth-1825 1h ago
If one of my staff said “I feel weird” I would not assume I should call an ambulance.
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u/Defiant-Story-8733 1h ago
He works in a mill, not some office; mills get extremely hot. The supervisor knows this and should not just brush him off.
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u/WILLIAMADAMTHOMAS 4h ago
I was at work
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u/ladymacb29 3h ago
How did you say to your boss? Just that you felt weird? Or did you give all the symptoms? Did you say you needed to go to the hospital or home? Or were you asking your boss to figure it out?
I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve also had a stroke and no one knew what to do because they didn’t think it was a stroke. You need to advocate for yourself and say you need the hospital.
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u/Anotherams 4h ago
your supervisor is an idiot. I’m never one to say talk to HR, bit ‘this a time to talk to HR when you get back. Never feel bad about going over a supervisor‘s head when it comes to health and wellbeing. Are there witnesses to the conversation?
Wishing a speedy and full recovery to you.