Thank you. My name is Winston Jerome Lindsley. I am a stroke survivor. I am delighted to speak with this group today and share my personal experience with stroke and stroke recovery. As you can see, I need a little help to get my message across. With a great deal of effort, I can associate sounds with the correct mouth shape, which is a major breakthrough for someone with apraxia. When preparing a speech, a written draft of the material is first created. Then the speech is read aloud by someone while I video their mouth, properly forming the words I want to say. I spend many hours practicing with the video tape until I am able to create the sounds, form the words and develop the breathing pattern that enables me to deliver the speech. You are listening to the end result of many hours of practice. I hope everyone will be able to follow along.
I want to dedicate this talk today to my late mother, Elizabeth Burnet Glover. Her love and guidance set my course in life and I thank her every day for that. Here is a slide of a needlepoint my mother created and left to me. It is a picture of the "Mary Powell", a steamboat that ran down the Hudson River in the late 1800s from Orange County, NY. Our ancestors were prominent in the Steamboat industry during that period of time. My mother educated me throughout my life on the importance of family history and relationships.
My father, Fanshawe Lindsley, was a descendent of Winston Churchill. I was given my name, Winston Jerome Lindsley, as a testament to the greatness of that man who led the British people during the worst trial that they faced in the twentieth century. I have made it my life's study to read and understand the part he played in leading his country through the Second World War. I will show you later how I use technology to speak the words that Churchill spoke before the United States Congress.
I grew up in Philadelphia. When I was 12 years old I bought my first car. By age 18, I could completely disassemble any GM car and put it back together. I was in an explosion that burned 60% of my body. After being in the hospital for 7 months and recovering for a year and a half, I moved to San Francisco and began a car repair business. I sold it after 3 years and became a General Motors service manager. One day I watched a TV program, "Sixty Minutes," about the expansion of business in the Middle East. Suddenly I saw that my future was taking automotive repair to this area of the world. I took a complete General Motors repair shop to a country I had never seen before, in a thirty-five foot motor home converted into a mobile workshop and show room. My first year and a half was spent training over one thousand mechanics, and selling equipment to over thirty-five Arab companies, while driving my unit across the desert sands of Saudi Arabia. Eventually, this business, International Technological Information Consultants, Inc., delivered trained mechanics, and provided automotive services to many developing countries. I traveled in many parts of the world, including 35 countries, and I lived in Russia for 15 years. With my business partner and close friend, Gennady Ozerov, I had prosperous business deals in Russia, Kuwait, and other Persian Gulf countries. I pushed myself to take chances, never doubting myself or giving up. Later, when I had a stroke, I found it necessary to apply the same perseverance to regaining the ability to communicate.
On April 29, 2002, I had an aneurysm on my aorta which caused internal bleeding. I underwent very dangerous surgery to repair the tear in my heart. The doctors lowered by body temperature to 18 degrees Fahrenheit and turned off all the pumps to complete the surgery. When I woke up they discovered that I had suffered a stroke on the left side of my brain. As a result, I was totally paralyzed on the right side of my body, but have now regained most of my strength. The stroke left me with aphasia and apraxia. I fight every day to gain back the skills I lost five years ago. As Sir Winston Churchill said, "We shall not fail or falter; we shall not weaken or tire. Neither the sudden shock of battle, not the long-drawn trials of vigilance and exertion will wear us down. Give us the tools, and we will finish the job."
Today, I want to share with you some of the TOOLS that I use to communicate.
COMPUTER: My computer is at the center of everything I do. It stores all of my information. I can connect to the Internet wherever I go so I am never out of touch with my family and friends. I use my computer to burn the DVD's of my speaking video tapes so they can be transferred to my IPOD. I use software called Write Out Loud, and WYNN which reads documents for me. One exciting new use of my computer is with the Skype program. By using this camera attached to my computer I can have face-to-face live contact with people - even from the U.S. to Australia!
CAMERA: A small digital camera is another important piece of technology that helps with communication. The saying goes that "a picture is worth a thousand words." You can take pictures and store them in your camera for reference when you want to tell someone whom or what you have seen. You can download the pictures onto your computer and send them to friends instead of writing words. Many new digital cameras also can take videos so you can use a movie to substitute for words when explaining something. You can use a separate camera for this purpose OR you can use a cell phone with a camera.
CELL PHONE: If you only have ONE piece of technology, a cell phone is the most important. A cell phone will allow you to summon help in an emergency. The cell phone can store all the numbers (and pictures) of your family and friends. Once you learn to use the phone you can call them without reading any words or numbers. Your cell phone can store Emergency Information - whom to call in an emergency, as well as your health and medical information. Your cell phone can store everyday information such as what you want to order at your local restaurant or Starbucks. You can hold up your phone to show them what you want. And, most cell phones also have a camera phone, that will allow you to snap photos of where you are, or where you have been. Or you can store photos of friends and family members to communicate WHOM you are thinking of.
I now have one of the new IPhones that has everything all in one device. I can take pictures, store music, check the stock market, text message, email, surf the internet, watch movies, keep a schedule, use a digital atlas…and a whole lot more!
IPOD: The IPOD is allowing me to speak to you today. As I explained earlier, this speech has been recorded on my IPOD by a vocal instructor. I am following the movements of her mouth in order to say these words. I believe that this will be a revolutionary way to help people with apraxia communicate. I am working with The STROKE COMEBACK CENTER in Virginia, to develop ways to help people with apraxia communicate. We believe that the IPOD can be one of the answers to allowing people with apraxia to speak. Very basic lessons can be practiced on the IPOD, short scripts, or a long and difficult speech - - like this one!
I WANT TO BE ABLE TO TALK. This is something I say all the time. I want to be able to talk because I am passionate about certain things and I need to be able to share my passion.
I believe that there is a future in Stem Cell research. Supporting the work being done with stem cells will move us faster to a cure for many diseases - many people will benefit from this research. (PAUSE)
We need to save the earth! Like the warning given by Winston Churchill many years ago, the global warming crisis warning is being ignored. (PAUSE) We are all citizens of the world, we are all inter-connected and we ALL need to work together to preserve energy use and prevent the warming of our planet. (PAUSE)
This interconnectedness is the reason that I am traveling in Australia and speaking to you, and the reason that I am the co-founder of IAM. I want stroke survivors and their families to know that there is help for them, and there is a future for all of us.
I hope that you will benefit from my message. Thank you for your time today.