Latest news with #NestorMontalvo
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Man Felt Like He Had a 'Really Bad Hangover.' But He Hadn't Been Drinking — and the Diagnosis Was a Shock
A retired police officer, Nestor Montalvo, woke up with a headache that he likened to a "really bad hangover," even though he hadn't been drinking When his wife called the paramedics, he learned he was having a stroke — and later, was only given a 15% chance of surviving it With surgery and medication, he continues to recover, saying, "I could have been a vegetable"A man woke up with what felt like a 'really bad hangover' — even though he hadn't been drinking. It turned out to be a symptom of something that could have been fatal. Nestor Montalvo says he woke up last September with a headache and blurry vision and tells CBS News that when he tried to stand up, 'everything started spinning … I fell." "I just didn't understand what was going on. I couldn't understand it," the retired NYC police officer, 61, said. "I didn't know why I was feeling that way." He compared his symptoms to a 'really bad hangover,' but said he hadn't had any alcohol the day before. His wife called 911, and paramedics said he was having a stroke. After he was rushed him to Catholic Health's Mercy Hospital in Nassau, Long Island, he was given the bleak news that he had just 15% chance of making it through. "I was like, 'Oh my God, I'm going to die. I don't even have a chance to say goodbye to anybody,' " Montalvo told the outlet. He had suffered an ischemic stroke, which the Cleveland Clinic explains is when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in your brain. "I could have been a vegetable. I could have died," said Montalvo, who was treated with medication and surgery, which included a tracheotomy as he couldn't breathe or swallow food on his own. "But they saved my life." The road to recovery was tough. "It was a mess. I couldn't swallow, I couldn't talk, I couldn't eat," Montalvo told the outlet. But with speech and physical therapy, he was able to have the tracheotomy reversed and join his family that Thanksgiving for dinner. "You take life for granted, and then when something like this happens, it wakes you up," Montalvo told the outlet "You hear people talk about it, and it just sounds like it's not going to happen to you. All of a sudden, it happens to you." He reunited with his care team in May, praising them and saying, "The people you meet along the way, they're angels." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
07-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
My hangover headache turned out to be a deadly medical emergency... I'm still learning to walk a year later
Nestor Montalvo had a pounding in his head that felt like a hangover headache, even though he hadn't touched a drop of alcohol. Soon after the pain onset, his vision began to blur and when he tried to stand up, the right side of his body was numb and he fell over. His wife immediately called 911 and the 61-year-old was rushed to the hospital. Montalvo said: 'Everything started spinning. I went to stand up, and I fell. I just didn't understand what was going on. I couldn't understand it. I didn't know why I was feeling that way.' The next thing he knew, the retired New York cop woke up to the sound of concerned whispers from family and doctors, murmuring about a '15 percent percent chance of survival.' It turns out, Montalvo was having an ischemic stroke, which occurs when a clot restricts blood flow to the brain and deprives it of oxygen. This can lead to death or life-long disabilities, as stroke is the leading cause of long-term disability in the US. Signs of an ischemic stroke - which account for 87 percent of all strokes - include some symptoms Montalvo was experiencing: sudden weakness or numbness, difficulty speaking or understanding speech, vision problems, severe headache, dizziness and loss of coordination. In the US, someone has a stroke every 40 seconds - about 795,000 people a year - and every three minutes, a person dies from a stroke, the CDC reports. Montalvo added: 'I was like "Oh my God, I'm going to die. I don't even have a chance to say goodbye to anybody."' When a stroke occurs, 'time is brain,' Dr Taylor Kimberley, chief of neurocritical care at Massachusetts General Hospital, told CBS. She was not involved in Montalvo's case. This means the faster a person can receive treatment can make all the difference in avoiding brain damage. The longer a stroke goes untreated, the worse the damage can be. When Montalvo arrived at Catholic Health's Mercy Hospital in Nassau, Long Island, in September 2024, his symptoms immediately triggered a stroke protocol. Once blood flow during a stroke is stopped, cells immediately start to die in major tissues, such as the cerebellum and brain stem, both of which regulate coordination and movement. According to Premier Neurology, anywhere from seven to 65 percent of people having a stroke will experience some form of a headache. In less than 10 minutes after arrival, Montalvo was assessed as a potential stroke patient, and five minutes later was hurried into a CT scan to confirm. Doctors then administered a clot-busting medication called TNK, and Montalvo underwent a minor procedure to ensure the clot had been broken up and would not reoccur. Following the initial procedure, Montalvo remained critical as his vocal chords stopped working and he underwent a tracheostomy - a surgery in which an opening is made in the throat and a tube is inserted to help with breathing. He couldn't talk or swallow for a month. For the following six weeks, Montalvo underwent an hour of speech therapy a day and did exercises to strengthen muscles in the mouth and throat. When his tracheostomy tube was finally removed, he underwent three more procedures to repair his throat and was eventually able to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal with his family. Now, nearly a year later, life for Montalvo is returning somewhat back to normal, although he continues to use a cane to walk and have outpatient treatment. He hopes to further his progress, however, telling CBS that recovering was harder than getting through the stroke itself. He said: 'You take life for granted, and then when something like this happens, it wakes you up. 'You hear people talk about it, and it just sounds like it's not going to happen to you. All of a sudden, it happens to you.'
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
His headache felt like a hangover. Paramedics made a scary diagnosis
When Nestor Montalvo woke up last September, he knew something was wrong. He had a headache, and his vision was blurred. The symptoms felt like a "really bad hangover," but he hadn't been drinking the day before. When he tried to stand, the right side of his body was numb. "Everything started spinning. I went to stand up, and I fell," Montalvo, 61, recalled. "I just didn't understand what was going on. I couldn't understand it. I didn't know why I was feeling that way." His wife helped him up and immediately called 911. Paramedics gave him alarming news: He was having a stroke. They rushed him to the emergency room at Catholic Health's Mercy Hospital in Nassau, Long Island. The situation was dire: Montalves said he overheard a doctor telling his daughter, a registered nurse, that he only had a 15% chance of survival. "I was like 'Oh my God, I'm going to die. I don't even have a chance to say goodbye to anybody,'" Montalvo, a retired New York City police officer, recalled. "Time is brain" Doctors who treat strokes have a saying: "Time is brain," said Dr. Taylor Kimberly, the chief of neurocritical care at Massachusetts General Hospital. Kimberly was not involved in Montalvo's treatment. Strokes are caused when blood flow to the brain is interrupted by either a blocked or ruptured blood vessel, Kimberly explained. Montalvo had a blockage, or an ischemic stroke. In these types of strokes, cells in the brain lose access to nutrients and oxygen, causing damage. The longer a stroke goes untreated, the worse the damage can be, Kimberly said. No one knew how long Montalvo had been having a stroke, since the symptoms had been present when he woke up. Dr. Cini Thayil, an emergency medicine attending at Mercy Hospital, was the first doctor to see Montalvo. He was having "very prominent" neurological deficits, she said. "You could see that something was awry," Thayil said. The symptoms triggered Mercy Hospital's stroke protocol. Within 10 minutes of arriving at the ER, Montalvo had been assessed as a potential stroke patient. Fifteen minutes later, he was undergoing a CAT scan. Shortly after doctors reviewed the scans and conferred, Montalvo received a clot-busting medication called TNK, Thayil said. Later, he underwent another minor procedure to ensure the clot was gone. "I could have been a vegetable, I could have died," said Montalves. "But they saved my life." A complicated road to recovery Even though the stroke had been treated, Montalvo's situation remained critical. His vocal cords collapsed, and he needed a tracheotomy to allow him to breathe. He couldn't talk or swallow because of the tubes, and aftereffects from the stroke itself made it difficult for him to speak and eat. When he met Aileen Fairchild, an acute care speech pathologist at Mercy Hospital, he couldn't even swallow a quarter-teaspoon of applesauce unaided. "It was a mess. I couldn't swallow, I couldn't talk, I couldn't eat," Montalvo recalled. For six weeks, Fairchild worked with Montalvo. He received about an hour of speech therapy a day, as well as exercises that targeted the muscles in his throat that contribute to eating and swallowing. He underwent regular scans to make sure the treatments were working. After that month and a half, the tracheotomy tube was removed, allowing Fairchild and Montalvo to work more on his ability to eat and speak. He underwent three procedures to help the muscles in his throat. By Thanksgiving, he was able to eat a regular meal with his family. Now, about a year after his stroke, Montalvo is doing better. He can speak and eat like before, and is enjoying retirement by spending time with his wife, their children, grandchildren, and their dog, Paris. He still uses a cane to walk and is continuing to receive outpatient physical therapy. Montalvo said that he hopes to continue his recovery, which he said has been even tougher than surviving the stroke itself. "You take life for granted, and then when something like this happens, it wakes you up," Montalvo said. "You hear people talk about it, and it just sounds like it's not going to happen to you. All of a sudden, it happens to you." Several people missing from Texas summer camp amid deadly flooding, officials say What a new DOJ memo could mean for naturalized U.S. citizens July 4 holiday week expected to set record for travelers
CBS News
05-07-2025
- Health
- CBS News
His headache and blurry vision felt like a hangover. Paramedics found a different and scary diagnosis
When Nestor Montalvo woke up last September, he knew something was wrong. He had a headache, and his vision was blurred. The symptoms felt like a "really bad hangover," but he hadn't been drinking the day before. When he tried to stand, the right side of his body was numb. "Everything started spinning. I went to stand up, and I fell," Montalvo, 61, recalled. "I just didn't understand what was going on. I couldn't understand it. I didn't know why I was feeling that way." His wife helped him up and immediately called 911. Paramedics gave him alarming news: He was having a stroke. They rushed him to the emergency room at Catholic Health's Mercy Hospital in Nassau, Long Island. The situation was dire: Montalves said he overheard a doctor telling his daughter, a registered nurse, that he only had a 15% chance of survival. "I was like 'Oh my God, I'm going to die. I don't even have a chance to say goodbye to anybody,'" Montalvo, a retired New York City police officer, recalled. Nestor (center, holding a white dog) with family during the holidays. Nestor Montalvo "Time is brain" Doctors who treat strokes have a saying: "Time is brain," said Dr. Taylor Kimberly, the chief of neurocritical care at Massachusetts General Hospital. Kimberly was not involved in Montalvo's treatment. Strokes are caused when blood flow to the brain is interrupted by either a blocked or ruptured blood vessel, Kimberly explained. Montalvo had a blockage, or an ischemic stroke. In these types of strokes, cells in the brain lose access to nutrients and oxygen, causing damage. The longer a stroke goes untreated, the worse the damage can be, Kimberly said. No one knew how long Montalvo had been having a stroke, since the symptoms had been present when he woke up. Dr. Cini Thayil, an emergency medicine attending at Mercy Hospital, was the first doctor to see Montalvo. He was having "very prominent" neurological deficits, she said. "You could see that something was awry," Thayil said. The symptoms triggered Mercy Hospital's stroke protocol. Within 10 minutes of arriving at the ER, Montalvo had been assessed as a potential stroke patient. Fifteen minutes later, he was undergoing a CAT scan. Shortly after doctors reviewed the scans and conferred, Montalvo received a clot-busting medication called TNK, Thayil said. Later, he underwent another minor procedure to ensure the clot was gone. "I could have been a vegetable, I could have died," said Montalves. "But they saved my life." A complicated road to recovery Even though the stroke had been treated, Montalvo's situation remained critical. His vocal cords collapsed, and he needed a tracheotomy to allow him to breathe. He couldn't talk or swallow because of the tubes, and aftereffects from the stroke itself made it difficult for him to speak and eat. When he met Aileen Fairchild, an acute care speech pathologist at Mercy Hospital, he couldn't even swallow a quarter-teaspoon of applesauce unaided. "It was a mess. I couldn't swallow, I couldn't talk, I couldn't eat," Montalvo recalled. Nestor Montalvo with his tracheotomy tube. Nestor Montalvo For six weeks, Fairchild worked with Montalvo. He received about an hour of speech therapy a day, as well as exercises that targeted the muscles in his throat that contribute to eating and swallowing. He underwent regular scans to make sure the treatments were working. After that month and a half, the tracheotomy tube was removed, allowing Fairchild and Montalvo to work more on his ability to eat and speak. He underwent three procedures to help the muscles in his throat. By Thanksgiving, he was able to eat a regular meal with his family. Nestor Montalvo during in-patient therapy. Nestor Montalvo Now, about a year after his stroke, Montalvo is doing better. He can speak and eat like before, and is enjoying retirement by spending time with his wife, their children, grandchildren, and their dog, Paris. He still uses a cane to walk and is continuing to receive outpatient physical therapy. Montalvo said that he hopes to continue his recovery, which he said has been even tougher than surviving the stroke itself. "You take life for granted, and then when something like this happens, it wakes you up," Montalvo said. "You hear people talk about it, and it just sounds like it's not going to happen to you. All of a sudden, it happens to you."
