Turning My Experience into Advocacy in Action - Reimagining Stroke Awareness

By Amy, a proud Dunghutti woman,

I was 32 when I had a stroke, while I was delivering a baby.  

I went from caring for others as a midwife with a double degree, to needing care myself overnight. That experience changed everything, including how I see stroke awareness in my community.  

For me, this work is deeply personal.  

My dream is to see my mob recognise the signs of stroke and get help quickly. I understand how important that is because I’ve lived it. I also know that my community in NSW’s Mid North Coast (Cowper Electorate) has been one of the highest risk groups for stroke for many years.  

That’s why I’m focusing on two things.  

The first is Reimagining F.A.S.T.  

This project is about reshaping the F.A.S.T message, so it truly connects with our mob. It’s not about coming in with all the answers. It’s about listening, learning and building something together with community.  

We’re using storytelling, yarning and local language, the ways knowledge is naturally shared. We’ve also worked with Dunghutti artist Kyara Fernando to create artwork that reflects community, symbols and totems people recognise and feel proud of. You’ll see it out in community on shirts, posters and magnets.  

Because people need to see themselves in the message.  

The second activity is a Dunghutti walk and run with the Indigenous Marathon Foundation (IMF) in Kempsey. 

We meet every Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoon at 4.30pm. Maria leads our team, and Charlie Maher is the manager of IMF. The foundation itself was founded by Robert de Castella. 

It’s about more than getting active. We come together, walk and run, support each other and build connection in our community. There are benefits for our physical and mental health, too. 

Being active is also a simple way to help reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease, and other chronic conditions. 

Both of these approaches come back to the same thing: education and prevention. 

I want to see more people understand stroke, to know the signs, and I want high blood pressure to be taken seriously - because it is one of the biggest risk factors. 

This is what advocacy in action looks like for me. Taking my experience and using it to create change, so fewer families have to go through what mine did. 

I know there is so much more we can do together.