The stroke affected David’s right side, impacting his leg, arm and causing double vision. Over the following weeks, he took to his blog – PeterDavid.net – to provide readers with updates on his progress, with those updates often laced with his sardonic sense of humor. He used the Dragon Dictate dictation program to do so, and used it as well to do a little writing, particularly on weekends, when his rehab treatments weren’t as intense. David’s wife, Kathleen, also shared updates on his condition and observations about the life-altering event from her own perspective. In one of her most heartfelt updates, posted on January 19, Kathleen noted, “Three weeks ago I was terrified I was going to lose my husband. Three weeks later I am making plans for him to come home. It is a much better feeling, believe me.”
David has insurance, and a good portion of the stroke-related expenses will be covered, but not all of them, and there are co-pays that add up. And so, Peter and Kathleen asked fans to purchase his books. Some of them generate more revenue than others, so please check out the “How You Can Help Peter David Recover” entry on the front page of David’s blog. His Star Trek output includes Imzadi, Q-in-Law, the long-running New Frontiers saga and, most recently, Blind Man's Bluff.
David was originally supposed to return home to Long Island on February 15, but he’s made enough progress that his release from the Florida rehab facility occurred on Saturday. As he wrote on Sunday, “God knows it wasn’t easy. We had to deal with a plethora of canceled flights due to the storm Fortunately enough we had the luck and resources to make it home yesterday afternoon, a mere one hour behind our scheduled flight.
"It is truly remarkable to be home again,” David continued. “I will never forget the people like Ali and Sarah in Florida who helped rebuild my body so that I can at least walk somewhat. Now it’s up to me to continue that work over the next months in order to fully recapture what my body could do before.”
Finally, StarTrek.com reached out to David the other day by email, just to check in, wish him well and convey the thoughts and prayers of Star Trek fans. Not even three hours later, we heard back. “Thank you Trek fans for your interest,” he wrote. “ I'm looking forward to getting home and, in the meantime, thank God for the Dragon Dictate program."
