Coretta Scott King Is Mostly Paralyzed

By KRISTEN WYATT

Associated Press Writer
August 19, 2005, 1:55 PM EDT

ATLANTA -- Coretta Scott King is mostly paralyzed on the right side of her body and faces a long, difficult recovery from a stroke, but she managed to say a few words Friday, her doctor said.

Dr. Maggie Mermin, King's personal physician, said that the 78-year-old widow of Martin Luther King Jr. is unable to walk and has been mostly unable to speak since the stroke Tuesday in the left side of her brain, which controls speech functions.

She said a few words today. We're very encouraged by that," the doctor said.

Mermin said King would be in Piedmont Hospital for at least another week and said, "I'm not certain she'll have full recovery. ... We certainly hope for that."

King, who was listed in fair condition Friday, has recognized all her visitors and was working with speech therapists to communicate using pictures, Mermin said.

"Physically, she's doing beautifully, and emotionally, I think she's doing well given the circumstances," she said.

The doctor said King suffered small strokes in April and on Aug. 2. After the second stroke, King was unable to speak for several hours and doctors put her on a blood thinner in hopes of preventing clots.

But Mermin said the medicine could not dissolve clots that were already there, and one of those caused Tuesday's stroke.

Late Thursday, King's four children, Martin Luther III, Yolanda, Dexter, and Bernice, spoke to reporters for the first time about their mother's condition and said they expect her to fully recover.

"We are completely assured she will come to a complete recovery," said Yolanda King, the oldest child. "We believe this is a cleverly disguised opportunity to grow."

Coretta Scott King founded the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta after her husband's assassination in 1968 and has traveled widely to help foster his dreams. The couple married in 1953.

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