Zdeněk
Zdeněk: Rejoice in All Circumstances
Zdeněk was a successful sales director living under constant stress and intense pressure at work until, at the age of 36, he suffered a stroke while driving. The following interview, which took place in May 2026, traces his difficult journey from a seven-month coma and complete paralysis to the life he lives today, drawing strength from his faith, intensive exercise, and helping out in his local parish.
Could you briefly introduce yourself? What did you do for a living, and what is your life like today?
My name is Zdeněk, I’m 45 years old, and I live in Prague. Before the stroke, I worked as a sales director, which involved a lot of stress, long hours, and constant travelling. I don’t work anymore, but I volunteer at my local church. I manage the email database and help make sure people know about church events. I live with my parents in an apartment on the sixth floor of a building with a lift. My mother cooks, does the laundry, and cleans for me, and my home is now fully adapted to my current condition. I have grab rails and a seat in both the bathroom and the toilet.
Do you remember the day you had the stroke?
I was 36 years old and driving back alone from a business trip to Ostrava. Suddenly, I completely lost all feeling in my legs. They were totally numb, as if they weren’t even there. I was terrified, but fortunately I managed to pull over safely. I rolled down the window and asked a woman passing by to call an ambulance for me. At the hospital, however, they initially treated me for dehydration. I then fell into a coma, and it took another 12 hours before they did a CT scan and discovered what had actually happened.
What happened after you woke up, and what does your rehabilitation look like today?
I spent seven months in a coma, and when I woke up, I was completely paralysed, a condition doctors call quadriparesis. I then spent years in various rehabilitation centres. Today, I’m no longer eligible for inpatient rehabilitation, so I attend outpatient therapy instead, which takes up a lot of my time. On Mondays I do circuit training, on Tuesdays I have speech therapy, Wednesdays are usually free, Thursdays are for physiotherapy, and on Fridays I see a psychologist. I still exercise very intensively.
During your recovery, you also had to face some difficult personal challenges. What was the hardest part for you?
One of the biggest emotional challenges was that, in connection with the stroke, I lost my partner while at the same time being unable to move. For a young man of 36, that was an enormous blow. What helped me, though, was that I never gave up on myself or on movement. Today, I make sure I go for regular preventive check-ups and try to take much better care of myself than I used to.
How did you find Cerebrum, and what does this community mean to you?
I first heard about Cerebrum at ErgoAktiv in 2023. For me, it is a group where I can feel that I belong and where I can take part in cultural and social activities. I enjoy going on rehabilitation stays with them and going to the theatre. I have friends there whom I’m always happy to see, because they understand my problems and I understand theirs.
Do you have a motto in life or any advice for people who have gone through something similar?
My main advice is: “Never give up.” My faith in God helps me enormously, and my motto is a verse from the New Testament: “Rejoice in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18). I would also like to tell everyone, including young people, to take prevention seriously, stay active, and drink plenty of water instead of coffee and energy drinks. It’s worth it.
