WHEN Jaycie Conley felt a tension headache coming on, she gave her neck a satisfying crack.
So when the 33-year-old found herself in intensive care, unable to walk, use the bathroom or lift her newborn baby, she was consumed by guilt – had her neck cracking caused an almost fatal ?
Jaycie Conley was left disabled by three strokes at the age of just 33 Credit: Kennedy News and Media
Jaycie thought she was doing the right thing by turning to a chiropractor to ease her neck tension Credit: Kennedy News and Media
“I would [crack my neck] every time I had a headache and it’d give me relief. I thought, ‘Did I do this? Am I contributory?’”, the mum-of-two says.
But as she lay in her hospital bed, a specialist delivered a revelation that left her enraged – she was there thanks to the chiropractor treatment she had gotten.
Jaycie thought she was doing the responsible thing by turning to a familiar chiropractor to ease the tension in her neck, in December 2021.
The “extreme velocity” of a professional’s hands had turned a simple headache into an emergency that almost cost Jaycie her life.
She suffered three strokes that have left her disabled at just 33 years old.
Jaycie suffered the strokes just six months after her first baby was born Credit: Kennedy News and Media
She visited her chiropractor thinking she’d slept on her neck funny, causing stiffness and pain Credit: Kennedy News and Media
The mum-of-two says she feels ‘angry and disappointed’ at the care she received from her chiropractor – and is urging others to be careful.
Jaycie, from Santa Barbara, , US, said: “The fact she was able to dissect and shred the arteries that were carrying the oxygen to my brain – that is, what I feel, made me have such a heavy .
“It could’ve been fatal and it could have been so much worse.
“I’m lucky to be alive and still be able to get up and walk around and move and play.”
It was only six months after her first baby that Jaycie’s life was torn apart.
To be 33 and basically be an elderly person, not able to use my hands, not able to stand up and walk, not able to use the bathroom on my own, that really did a number on my psyche
Jaycie Conley
“I was about six months postpartum after having [my firstborn] and I was stressed and deprived from caring for him,” says Jaycie.
“It began with a giant headache on the left hand side of the back of my neck.
“I remember thinking I slept wrong, like I kinked my neck or something so I let it go for a couple of days.
“But the pain was getting worse so I contacted a [chiropractor] that I’d worked with before.”
Jaycie visited the practitioner for a .
“I went home and went about my day,” she says. “The same day I started experiencing nausea and my eyes [went] cross-eyed by themselves.
“I ended up texting [the chiropractor]: ‘’What do I do? What is this?’ She said, ‘Come on in’.”
Jaycie says the chiropractor missed an opportunity to flag that she was having a stroke.
“I went in and she adjusted me again and checked my eyes to see if I’m dilating my eyes,” Jaycie says.
“She still had no wherewithal to tell me what she was thinking was happening, and I had no idea. I didn’t even know [a stroke] was a possible outcome.
“She said, ‘It could be you’re just having a weird reaction’. She said if it keeps happening, go to the doctor. She said that several times.
What is a transient ischaemic attack (TIA)?
Transient ischaemic attacks (TIA) are also referred to as 'mini strokes'.
They’re caused by a temporary disruption in the blood supply to part of the brain.
This can cause sudden symptoms similar to a stroke, such as speech and visual disturbance, and numbness or weakness in the face, arms and legs.
But a TIA does not last as long as a stroke.
The effects last a few minutes to a few hours and fully resolve within 24 hours.
The main symptoms of a TIA can be remembered with the word FAST:
- Face – the face may have dropped on 1 side, the person may not be able to smile, or their mouth or eye may have dropped.
- Arms – the person may not be able to lift both arms and keep them raised because of weakness or numbness in 1 arm.
- Speech – their speech may be slurred or garbled, or the person may not be able to talk at all, despite appearing to be awake; they may also have problems understanding what you’re saying to them.
- Time – it’s time to call 999 immediately if you see any of these signs or symptoms.
In the early stages of a TIA, it’s not possible to tell whether you’re having a TIA or a full stroke.
It’s important to call 999 immediately and ask for an ambulance if you or someone else has symptoms of a TIA or stroke.
Even if the symptoms disappear while you’re waiting for an ambulance to arrive, you still need to be assessed in hospital.
Source: NHS
The mum, pictured with her husband, suffered two mini strokes
“It was alarming the way she wasn’t alarmed.”
Jaycie decided to go to hospital for peace of mind. There, after an MRI scan, she was stunned to be told she’d suffered a bilateral artery dissection, a rare, life-threatening condition where the arteries in the neck tear simultaneously.
This can restrict blood flow as leaking blood clots and blocks arteries.
Jaycie suffered two and a third, bigger, stroke in hospital.
The mum says she’s grateful she suffered her third stroke while under 24-hour observation in hospital and was forced to spend a further five days in intensive care.
During this time she claims the chiropractor checked in with her asking if she’d visited the doctors.
Jaycie says: “I was completely shocked that going to a chiropractor had contributed to this. I thought, ‘I’m 33, how could this happen?’
“To be 33 and basically be an elderly person in the ICU, not able to use my hands, not able to stand up and walk, not able to use the bathroom on my own, that really did a number on my psyche for a while.
“I was terrified my child might not have had a mum. I couldn’t lift my son and I had a hard time being a stay-at-home parent. That put a lot of stress on our family.
“That first night, the chiropractor texted me and said, ‘Hey did you ever go to the hospital?’
“She tried to make it sound like she’d urged me with inches of her life to get me to go to the hospital.”
On what the cause of Jaycie’s stroke was, she says: “[The doctor said] ‘You could’ve had a stroke prior, it’s possible. But is it likely? No. Her velocity of the way she cracked your neck exacerbated it’. When he said that, it made me feel better.
If I had not gone to get my neck manipulated, I think I still would’ve had a TIA
Jaycie Conley
Jaycie suffered a third larger stroke in hospital and is warning others against visiting chiropractors or adjusting their own necks
“If I had not gone to get my neck manipulated, I think I still would’ve had a TIA [Transient Ischemic Attack] of some kind but I believe she made it worse and exacerbated it.”
Now Jaycie is warning others to avoid or visiting a chiropractor.
Jaycie said: “[Chiropractors] are trained to look for and learn about strokes. They even make you sign a waiver that that is a risk – but no one pays attention to it.
“I signed a waiver not knowing what I was signing. That’s not education, that’s not fully informed consent.
“I feel angry and disappointed. I just hope somebody learns what I didn’t learn prior to.
“If you have a headache and you’re postpartum, go to the hospital. If there’s any part of this I can promote, it’s to be aware of what it is and the severity.”
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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