Henry Winkler:
I do, indeed.
Gary Barg:
What kind of stories do they tell
you?
Henry Winkler: They
tell me that it really, really
helped them. It helped them be
a better caregiver. It helped
their job. It helped their
patient. It helped their
parent. It helped their child.
They are just grateful.
Gary Barg:
How many folks in the country are
going through this?
Henry Winkler:
Over a million. A million
people have had a stroke in America
and a tremendous amount of those get
upper limb spasticity.
Gary Barg:
That’s amazing. What were
people doing before?
Henry Winkler:
Living with it. Struggling
with it.
Gary Barg:
What is the one most important piece
of advice you have for family
caregivers?
Henry Winkler:
I’d say I have two things. One
is make sure that your glass is half
full so you can present that glass
to the people you work with.
That’s number one. I think
everything comes from self-image.
I really do.
Gary Barg:
That’s excellent. And your
second one?
Henry Winkler:
And my second one is tenacity.
That somehow you keep the fire
burning to take those tiny steps
forward because it is so easy to
just give up.
Gary Barg:
Absolutely. And so, then, the
number one thing you have to do is
care for yourself first.
Henry Winkler:
Yeah, that’s right. That’s in
everything. I so agree with that. I
always say that if you don’t get it
together with your own personal
self, you can’t do much.
Gary Barg: You
can be no help to anyone else.
Henry Winkler:
That’s right. Believe it or
not, when I speak publicly—not about
this, necessarily, just when I’m
speaking, I end my speech with that
very thought. You know, there is no
altruism, actually. That’s a
concept that is, I think, unlivable.
You do something nice and it feels
good. You are also doing it
for yourself.
Gary Barg: Right.
You can’t ignore yourself.
Henry Winkler:
You can’t ignore yourself.
There is nothing wrong with not
ignoring yourself as long as your
circle widens to include at least
one other human being.
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