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“I believe stroke diagnosis in a younger population is definitely stigmatised”

Stroke Rehab Times
By Andrew Nealen
Feb. 20, 2023

In the first of a three-part series on stroke survivor Garrett Mendez, who was only 19 years old when he had a stroke, we speak with Garrett himself on his survival story.

SR: Could you give us an introduction to yourself and your life pre-stroke?
I am currently 36 years old. I live in Trumbull, Connecticut. Life pre stroke I was very athletic. For example, I played baseball, golf, and ice hockey in my younger years. I attended a private high school named Norte Dame of Fairfield because they have a competitive hockey team that I wanted to compete on. I ended up playing on Notre Dame’s varsity ice hockey from the time I was a freshman. During my sophomore year of high school Notre Dame started a varsity lacrosse team, which I made.