Dr. Pimple Popper (Sandra Lee) Thought Her Stroke Was a Hot Flash—Don’t Ignore These Symptoms
Experts say it's easy to write off the early warning signs that something's wrong
Key Takeaways
- Dr. Sandra Lee, 55, mistook her stroke symptoms for a hot flash at first.
- Stroke symptoms in women can be subtle and easy to overlook during menopause.
- Managing blood pressure and high cholesterol can significantly reduce stroke risk.
She thought it was a hot flash. It wasn’t. Sandra Lee, MD—the beloved dermatologist millions know as Dr. Pimple Popper—recently revealed she suffered a stroke at age 55 while filming her hit Lifetime show. Her story is one every woman navigating life after menopause needs to hear, because the symptoms she initially brushed off may sound painfully familiar.
Dr. Pimple Popper’s stroke started with menopause-like symptoms
Dr. Lee was filming season 2 of Dr. Pimple Popper: Breaking Out and seeing patients at her dermatology practice in Upland, California, when she first felt off. What she described initially sounded like something so many of us have experienced during this stage of life—and that’s exactly what makes her story so important.
“I had what I thought was a hot flash,” Dr. Lee told People in an interview. “I got super sweaty and didn’t feel like myself.”
Woman's World Answers
That evening at her parents’ home near her practice, she felt “very restless.” “In one leg, I kept feeling shooting pains,” she said. “I noticed that I was having a tough time walking down the stairs.”
By the next morning, the signs of a stroke were undeniable. “I would hold my hand out, and it would just slowly collapse. I noticed that I had a tough time articulating and just enunciating. I thought, ‘Am I having a stroke?'” she continued.
Her father, also a dermatologist, urged her to visit the emergency room. An MRI confirmed she had suffered an ischemic stroke, which occurs when blood vessels supplying the brain become blocked and cells are deprived of nutrients and oxygen. “What essentially happened is I had a part of my brain that died,” she said.
Why women over 45 are at a higher risk for strokes
The American Stroke Association estimates that strokes affect 425,000 women in the United States per year, and women are at a higher risk than men. One reason: Since estrogen helps keep blood vessels healthy, drops in the hormone that occur after menopause can make strokes more likely.
Dr. Lee’s neurologist, May Kim-Tenser, MD, of USC’s Keck medical school, pointed to a risk factor many women overlook. “The number one risk factor is high blood pressure. Almost a 15 percent increase in stroke prevalence among patients that are age 45 up to 64,” Dr. Kim-Tenser said.
Connecting the dots, Dr. Lee revealed “my blood pressure and my cholesterol were not under control, and I have a lot of stress in my life, dealing with my patients and the show.”
Stroke symptoms every woman should know
Dr. Lee’s experience shows how easily stroke symptoms can be mistaken for something less urgent—especially when you’re used to attributing new aches and changes to menopause. Knowing the warning signs is your best defense. Common signs of a stroke include:
- Slurred speech
- Weakness in your face or arms
- Blurred or double vision
- Dizziness or loss of balance
- Tingling or numbness on one side of the body
- Headache
“A TIA [mini stroke], mild stroke and full-blown stroke all are associated with a high risk of recurrence if appropriate measures are not taken immediately,” says neurologist James C. Grotta, MD, director of stroke research at Memorial Hermann–Texas Medical Center. “So starting preventive therapy is just as important after a TIA or a mild stroke as after a major stroke.”
How to reduce your stroke risk
Here’s the good news: Encouraging research in the International Journal of Stroke found that 84 percent of strokes are preventable. Small daily habits can make a meaningful difference, and most of them are things you might even enjoy adding to your routine. Aside from keeping your blood pressure and cholesterol under control and following a healthy diet and exercise routine, here’s what can help:
- Sip green tea. A study in Stroke found that drinking one to two cups of green tea per day slashed stroke risk by 88 percent, thanks to compounds called catechins that reduce cholesterol while taming inflammation.
- Fill up on fiber. Increasing dietary fiber intake reduces stroke risk and improves odds of survival, per a study in Stroke. Fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains are great sources.
- Snack on carrots. A Harvard study found women who enjoyed one large carrot daily noticeably lowered their stroke risk, thanks to its beta-carotene and vitamin E.
- Soak in the tub. Research in Heart found that taking a warm bath every day decreased stroke risk by up to 46 percent compared to those who soaked just twice a week.
- Enjoy a laugh. A report in the Journal of Epidemiology found that stroke odds were 38 percent lower in people who laughed nearly every day.
Dr. Sandra Lee’s message for women at risk of a stroke
Dr. Lee paused filming and spent two months in recovery, including physical and occupational therapy. Fortunately, Dr. May Kim-Tenser said, “She’s lucky. Her symptoms are pretty much resolved.”
Though Dr. Lee returned to work in January, she admitted the emotional toll of her stroke lingers. “There’s a lot of PTSD because it happened while I was filming the show,” she said. “Thankfully I’m pretty much back to normal. . . . It really makes you realize how precious life is.”
Her parting words carry particular weight: “I want to think about it as a blessing in disguise. Because it reminds you to take better care of yourself.”
She added, “I want to get the word out that if you have symptoms like I had, make sure you see your doctor. Take care of yourself.”
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