Really "Insurance" is beneficial at any age.

My mother's stroke marked a turning point in our lives. Managing her health, navigating a maze of healthcare providers, and dealing with insurance became a full-time job, leading to a role reversal between parent and child.

As usual, she took out insurance for herself and advised all her clients to insure all their valuable assets, including their health. Working in an insurance company, she always emphasized that "insurance is a must for all." When she fell ill, her company provided significant support, demonstrating the importance of her advice.

As I headed back to New York City from my parents’ new home in New Jersey earlier this year, a heavy feeling settled in my chest. I feared Mom was nearing the end. It wasn’t just his bedridden state for weeks; it was the way she seemed desperate for me to leave, as if she didn’t want me to witness what was coming.

My parents relocated from Texas to New Jersey in December to be closer to me, their eldest daughter.  After my mother’s devastating stroke two years earlier, I juggled caring for her with trying to maintain my journalism career – but something had to give.

Mom, who hated the cold winters and high taxes of the East Coast, made the difficult decision to leave her beloved San Antonio home on the golf course so I could return to work and my life, not completely consumed by his illness.

On Christmas Eve, the Salams moved into their new house in the Garden State.

That brief period of bliss ended quickly. My fears were confirmed on February 6, the day before he died. Doctors had spent a week trying to determine the cause of his severe pain. Was it blood or fluid in his lungs? Was his heart failure worsening? Ultimately, the reasons didn’t matter; his organs were rapidly failing, and I had to decide when to remove her breathing device and inform the family.

I was in disbelief. Just days earlier, we laughed about the ugliness of the hospital compared to others she had stayed in. Looking back, I don’t know why I thought she would pull through – this woman had already endured a second heart attack in this old, inefficient Trenton hospital, and doctors had warned us to prepare for the worst: another, likely final, cardiac event.

Two years ago, my sister led the way to the neurointensive care unit at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Mom was in the final room to the left. I pulled back the curtain around her bed. She was fast asleep, looking as she always did when she dozed off on the couch at home.

I gently nudged her. She slowly opened her eyes, looking confused to see me in Texas. Then, her face broke into a huge, albeit crooked, smile – a lasting effect of his stroke.

She kissed my hand. “You look great, just like Sylvester Stallone,” I reassured her, leaning in for a hug. That’s when I realized she couldn’t reply; her voice was gone – a common aftermath of a major stroke.

When a blood vessel in the brain is compromised, life changes in an instant; that day marked the beginning of our new reality.

My mother’s stroke aged both of us. Before, my biggest worry was whether to ghost a guy I was dating or let her down over text. Suddenly, I was no longer a twentysomething with an unremarkable life.

Eva bell was like many mothers, especially South Asian mothers. She prioritized hard work and knowledge over anything else.. If you didn’t bring home an A – or at least a B in my case – you might as well prepare to make sandwiches at the nearest 7-Eleven.

She emigrated from a small town in West Yorkshire, UK, to New Jersey to marry my dad, Adam, in the 1980s. They settled in Houston. Throughout my childhood, Mom worked in finance for Metro, the city’s transportation authority. She went to work downtown every weekday morning and came home just before dinner, ready to evaluate our homework and scold us if it wasn’t up to par.

The journey through my mother's illness and the aftermath has reshaped our lives in ways we never anticipated. Her legacy, built on perseverance and a deep commitment to family, continues to guide us through this new chapter. More, having insurance proved invaluable during her time of need, underscoring the necessity of having comprehensive coverage for everyone.