HIGH POINT, N.C. — It's been a month since a High Point 911 emergency operator had an emergency of his own on the job.
"I was sitting here and it was just another beginning of another shift and all the sudden I felt really dizzy," Matthew Brown said. "I felt like I was going to be sick and my right hand was kind of moving strangely on its own.
Brown couldn't move or talk much, but somehow managed to turn to his coworkers and cry out for help.
"At that point I realized I couldn’t talk at all, and I managed to say 'I need help,' and at that point my teammates kind of came over to find out what was going on and determined I was probably having a stroke."
Because he was surrounded by emergency operators and responders, an ambulance got there in no time.
"This time, for me, the life they saved was mine, and the person who had the emergency was here in this room, the fact that everyone worked together to save my life is really special for me."
Brown surprised his coworkers with a visit at the 911 center on Friday night. It was his first time there since the stroke.
There were a lot of hugs.
"I’m getting stronger every day, but I am still walking with a walker."
He's also working on his right hand.
"The stroke as affected my hand, I'll need to learn some things about typing again."
Brown isn't back on the job just yet, but he hopes to make a full recovery within the next couple of months. He spent three weeks in the hospital, and just returned home Monday.
"Rehab continues, I keep working at it and I really do hope to make a full recovery."
Brown says he's received an outpouring off support from his High Point family, and even strangers. Here's a picture of letters he's gotten from fellow dispatchers from across the country.
