TIA - Doctor says “Keep Riding”

What’s TIA? It’s not some sort of titanium interface for a bike, it’s a “Transient Ischaemic Attack” or mini stroke. No, I didn’t have a TIA myself but on my ride home from Priscilla’s Kitchen at East Garston, I met Harry who told me about his experience.

It had been one of those days when I had not spoken to anyone on my ride other than to confirm that I would like my roasted vegetables and humous on a baguette. When I saw a rider taking a break on a bench by the pond at Shurlock Row, I was only too pleased to ask if I could join him.

The bench where I sat with Harry in September 2023. This photo was taken in January 2024.

We had the usual exchange about where we were riding and how far we still had to go to reach our destinations. Harry told me that he had only a few miles to ride and that he was pleased to be back on his bike after an illness. He explained that he had suffered a TIA, which he described as a mild stroke, and that the doctor he had seen at the hospital encouraged him to get on his bike and continue riding.

Harry was happy to talk and I was happy to listen, partly out of curiosity but mainly out of admiration for the way he was dealing with this potentially serious incident: a TIA can be a warning of a serious and life threatening attack. He told me that he was a project manager dealing with building refits: anyone in a managerial role will know that this means dealing with all sorts of problems including supply side issues, personnel matters, unforeseen construction snags - in short, more than enough scope for real stress. He added that he and his wife had had a difficult year but thought that they were coping; obviously, he added, they were not.

Harry said that he first realised something was wrong when he started typing a report in the office. He wasn’t a touch typist but considered himself to be fairly good at using the fingers of both hands; however, his left hand simply would not keep up with this right. He took himself to hospital and had an MRI which showed a clot on the right side of his brain. We didn’t talk about his treatment in any detail but what sticks in my mind is the advice to keep riding.

There’s no map for this blog post; you can find some of my routes to Priscilla’s Kitchen at East Garston elsewhere in this blog. This post is dedicated to Harry with my admiration for the way he dealt with a life threatening condition and to the medical advice to keep riding.