Permission to Pause
Latarsha Jones had a persistent headache for weeks; she also had bouts of dizziness and sometimes found herself struggling for words. As the assistant principal at a busy elementary school in Atlanta, Ga., she didn’t want those things to slow her down, so she ignored them.
“Then, when I was at school preparing paperwork for a standardized test, the room began to spin. I thought I was speaking, but nothing was coming out of my mouth,” she said.
Latarsha was taken to the emergency room and diagnosed with a left mid-brain ischemic stroke caused by a blockage in a blood vessel that supplies the brain.
“I was shocked. To me, a stroke happened to older Caucasian men, not to a 41-year-old African American woman,” she explained.
Fortunately, Latarsha fully recovered, but she did not make the recommended lifestyle changes or take the medication her doctor prescribed. Two years later, she had another stroke.
“Looking back on it, it all makes sense – it was clear that my weight, stress, grief at two deaths in my family, and other unhealthy lifestyle choices were contributing to my poor health,” she said. “I had so many warning signs but I ignored them and just kept going.”
Latarsha then took charge of her life. Today, seven years after her first stroke, she maintains a healthy and active lifestyle, walking at least five times a week and eating more colorful foods. She relocated to Florida, where she lives with the youngest of her three children, 17-year-old Kara, and teaches reading at an elementary school.
She was selected by the American Heart Association to be a Class of 2019 Ambassador based on her simple message — “Give yourself permission to pause” – which she shares at events across the country as she, along with countless other patients, wait for a breakthrough treatment.
“I tell people to listen to their body, not to put off seeing a doctor if something doesn’t feel right and to give themselves permission to pause.”
Treatment options for patients who have experienced a stroke are limited and the need for something to help reduce the risk is needed. Although she has taken control of her health, Latarsha said she lives with the fear of having another stroke. “I try not to think about it and just try to just live my life, but the reality is it could happen. It’s a scary thought for sure.”
Bristol Myers Squibb collaborates with Janssen Pharmaceuticals on the development and commercialization of FXIa, an anticoagulant discovered by Bristol Myers Squibb and in Phase 2 clinical trials for prevention of secondary stroke.
The patient stories shared in this Annual Report depict individual patient responses to our medicines or investigational compounds and are not representative of all patient responses. In addition, there is no guarantee that potential drugs or indications still in development will receive regulatory approval. This Annual Report contains statements about the company’s future plans and prospects that constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ from those indicated as a result of various important factors, including those discussed in the company’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. These documents are available from the SEC, the Bristol-Myers Squibb website or from Bristol-Myers Squibb Investor Relations. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent our estimates only as of the date hereof and should not be relied upon as representing our estimates as of any subsequent date. While we may elect to update forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so, even if our estimates change. This Annual Report also contains certain non-GAAP financial measures, adjusted to include certain costs, expenses, gains and losses and other specified items. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures are available on the company’s website at www.bms.com
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