Julie Chin, anchor of NBC affiliate KJRH in Tulsa, Okla., told “TODAY” in an exclusive interview, “I feel great” just four days after what her doctor believed was the start of a stroke on live television.
Chin recalled that she initially thought there was something wrong with a contact lens in her eye as she struggled to read the words on the teleprompter during the broadcast on the morning of Sept 3, but then she noticed that her hands and arms were starting to go numb.
Tulsa News anchor Julie Chin is live on the start of the stroke. She knew something was wrong and threw it to a meteorologist while her worried colleague called 911. She’s fine now, but she wants to share her experience and educate viewers about the warning signs of a stroke. pic.twitter.com/aWNPPbn1qf
- Mike Hinton (@Mikesington) September 5, 2022
Chin shared a text message she sent to her husband during the medical incident, adding that she was unable to type the correct words.
“I need help. Something is not working today. My job doesn’t work, my job is to help me, “she wrote to her husband.
“Obviously, I never sent such a message,” Chin told TODAY. “I just can’t put it into words, as hard as I try.”
Jean relayed the radio to Anne Brown, a meteorologist, and her colleague — whom Jean called “my hero” — quickly called 911. After numerous tests, doctors determined Chin was at the start of his stroke.
“We’re doing more tests, but they think this is the beginning of a stroke,” Chin said. “They thought maybe my body corrected itself halfway through and I didn’t have a full stroke.”
“Right now I’m seeing more specialists and doctors and getting more opinions because we don’t really know what’s causing this,” she continued. “Of course, I want to know what caused it so we can prevent it from happening again.”
Chin, who said she had no family history of stroke, thought she handled the stress well and even had a good night’s sleep before work on Sept 3.
“It’s probably not the proudest moment of my career,” Chin said. “But people have been very kind and they have been cheering for me and praying for me and my family is very grateful.”
In an interview with KJRH anchor Karen Larsen that aired Sept. 6, Chin said she had struggled to relax in the days after the live-streamed event.
“Yesterday I did turn on my work computer and my husband said, ‘Turn off the computer’,” Chin said.
“The good news is that everything is fine and they don’t see any major events that really scare them,” she continued. “But the bad news is, we don’t know why that is. If it can happen again.”
Chen will continue to search for answers and is now focused on raising awareness of the warning signs of stroke.
“If you need help, get help. You know, don’t get help just because I’m trying not to, I probably should have gotten help earlier, “said Chin, who plans to rest and return to work soon. “I might be a little nervous my first time as an anchor, but I’ll start over. I can’t live in fear, and… God gave me this chapter for a reason. So I’m going to make the most of it and not let it stop me from doing anything. But maybe I’ll let it slow me down, a little bit.”
KJRH spoke with care manager Cameron Richardson, a member of the stroke team at St. Francis who cared for Chin. Stroke can happen to anyone at any age, and calling 911 at the first sign of symptoms is critical, Richardson said.
“Time is an important factor,” Richardson said. He noted that people should call 911 before entering a hospital on their own. “You may be waiting in line, your treatment is delayed, and every second counts. Time is an important factor. Time equals brain.”
On Tuesday night, Chin again thanked people for their “prayers, love and messages” on Facebook.
“I had no idea that my story would survive this long or get such a big response. In fact, seeing videos of yourself with medical emergencies everywhere can be a little overwhelming. All I can say is that during those live television moments, I tried to steer the boat as gracefully as possible, “she wrote in part, adding that she” continued to see doctors to try to figure out what was going on “.
This article originally appeared on TODAY.com