My story starts August 5 1997, July 6th I had turned the big"40". One month later I find myself in a coma fighting for my life. I suffered a massive stroke, cause was determined by the birth control pill! Let me give you a history of who I am. I never smoked I worked out with a personal trainer regularly. I was beyond just being fit!no high blood pressure. I was a successful CEO of my own corporation. I owned a national staffing company. At the time of the stroke I was completely unaware to what had happened it was a Monday my "significant other" were suppose to go in and sign the loan docs on a house we were buying. I had a horrible headache which I never got. I woke up went into the kitchen took an aspirin w/some oj went back to bed. I began thrashing around trying to get out of bed my left side wouldn't move. My boyfreind woke up asking if I was having a nightmare I turned to him & said I can't get out of bed. He took one look at me jumped out of bed and screamed "oh my God you've had a stroke! I've got to get you to the hospital!" It didn't register with me I kept arguing w/him telling him I'm fine, he's over exsagurating. Hedressed me in my sweats picked me up and drove me to Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo CA 15 minutes from where we lived we were living in San Juan Capistrano it was 5:00am He pulled up at the emergency, ran in and yelled at the nurses "get me a DR. stat! I have a stroke patient, move now!" I owe my life to this guy!! As soon as they brought me in all the ER nurses asked Marco if I was on BC Pills, he replied yes. I had taken them for 16 years never ever had any side effects from them previously.They did a spinal tap I started screaming in the mean time he called my folks. Upon arrival to the hospital I went into a coma for 30 days, the neurosurgan wanted to cut open my skull and put a shunt in to releive the swelling Marco told him don't you dare have surgury on her! use another way to bring down the swelling. He spoke to the neurologist who gave me a drug to dehydrate the swelling. During this time my parents arrived my mother almost had a stroke seeing me lying in bed hooked up to all these tubes. She kept asking everyone "what caused the stroke,she was so healthy?"After I woke up then the real ordeal started. I couldn't swallow liquids so I had to suck on a sponge dipped in water. I didn't have a clue as to what happened to me. The only thing I knew I hated hospitals & I was determined to get better. I had to re-learn to swallow. The day I came out of the coma Iwas transferred to the Rehab Dept. Boy am I lucky they worked w/me immediately. I could speak but my face was still droopy. I was a therapists dream I was so determined except I could only focus for 5 seconds! When the therapist came in & gave me facial excercises she said to do these 3-5 times a day. I did them 10 times a day. I kept asking my speach therapist please teach me how to swallow I can't stand having my liquids thickened! My boyfreind came to have breakfast w/me every morning on his way to work. He is a geologist. I found out 1/3 of my brain had been damaged from the frontal lobe to the brain stem all the Dr.'s were amazed that I survived & that I was such a fighter. My neurologist tokd my parents"she's a fighter don't you worry about her she's going to "be out among 'em". Damn right I said! My right side is still affected but the greatest deficits I suffered are cognitive I'm a shell of what I use to be, because I use to be such a go getter my boyfreind had nick named me SuperG.After the stroke I kept telling Marco "don't worry I'm going to beat this it's not going to beat me!' He said "you really deserve the nick name now superg" So here I am 4 years later still trying to get better