Crookston lawmaker Debra Kiel focusing on recovery a month after minor stroke

Apr. 19—CROOKSTON — A month after she had a minor stroke in St. Paul, state Rep. Deb Kiel says she is recovering well.

On Friday, April 14, the Republican lawmaker from Crookston was on her way back from attending a Sand Hill Watershed District meeting in Winger, Minnesota, her first legislative activity since her stroke.

"It was very important for me to rest, so the challenge of shutting off the legislative work that I was doing was difficult, but I'm doing well," Kiel said.

On Friday, March 17, Kiel, 65,

had a minor stroke

and was hospitalized overnight in St. Paul. She then returned home to Crookston, where she has been recovering. Initially, she hoped to return to the Capitol the week after she announced she had had a stroke, but following doctors' orders, Kiel has pushed back returning to the stress-filled job as the legislative session nears the end.

"I'm really fortunate that I didn't have more problems than I did, but the doctors, both my internist and the neurologist, have said this is a really important time to keep my stress low, and of course, take a lot of blood thinners so I don't have a recurrence of another stroke," Kiel said.

At the beginning of this week, Kiel said doctors have recommended another week at home, but she plans to complete some work remotely.

Another legislator, Rep. Jeff Backer, R-Browns Valley, helped identify that Kiel was having a stroke. Kiel said her left leg felt like gelatin, and she felt some dizziness and fatigue, but did not have any of the telltale symptoms of a stroke — one side of her face drooping or difficulty speaking, for instance. Though she had few stroke symptoms, Backer, who volunteers for the Browns Valley Ambulance Service, directed Kiel to the emergency room.

"I'm glad and very thankful he did encourage me to go check it out because I think, in the end, we were able to stop things from getting worse," Kiel said.

Her recovery has included speech, occupational and physical therapy.

As fellow legislators tackle omnibus budget bills, Kiel still hopes to have input before the Legislature convenes. If her doctors do not clear her to return to St. Paul before the end of the session, her colleagues will help, she said.

"I have some real concerns and, hopefully, some amendments," Kiel said. "I'm working with some of the members on those — if I can't carry the amendment, then someone else will, so the work still gets done."

Kiel hopes to see money added to the budget to help senior care facilities, an issue that is close to home. On March 17,

RiverView Memory Care in Crookston announced it would be closing

after experiencing ongoing staffing shortages that necessitated the hiring of expensive traveling labor. It was the 15th nursing home in Minnesota to close since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

"There is nothing in the budget that would help resolve some of our nursing home issues, and that is important for me to work on as we live in rural Minnesota and do not want to lose any more services," Kiel said.

The legislative session ends May 22.