Recovery from stroke?

[Pooky]

I just want to hear how you've recovered from your stroke. I would really like to know how you recovered (what therapies you did, etc.). As for me, my recovery is ongoing. I have no paralysis (which, I consider a miracle because I didn't move the left side of my body for four months), I am re-learning how to drive, and I will start going back to college in March, 2001. My speech and memory need a lot of improvement, though. I have to get my memory better before I go back to school. My speech is bad, but people understand me on the telephone.
I think that most of my recovery has to do with the fact that I was young when I had my stroke. My physical and occupational therapists helped, too.

[Peter Brown]

Hi Pooky,

You shoud know me from other posts. My stroke was fairly close to yours, 26th August 1999. I had an arterial clot at the back of the cerebellum, bilateral in that it affected both sides of the brain, infarcted meaning a piece of my brain died (removed in an operation)all this complicated with a haemorhage between the cerebellum and brain stem.

I was on life support for 10 days, the first five in a coma. I was quadrapelegic for 4 weeks, no talking because of a trachea. I was moved to a rehabilitation hospital for intensive therapy. I walked out 5 weeks later without aid of any sort and no known memory of speech problems. The biggest problem was diplopia (double vision). This cleared naturally over a period of 7 months and lots of eye exercises.

I regained my driving licence 8 months after the stroke. I returned to work part time at 9 hours per week over 3 days in mid February and at present I am at 30 hours per week over 4 days. My job is as a network specialist in data communications.

All this when I was only expected to be a vegetable if I survived.(ie I should have physical defects as well as memory and speech problems)

A lot of hard work and a positive attitude that never says die. An acceptance that I could not undo what has happened, but if I want to be a part of today and tomorrow it is up to me. As the saying says, no use crying over spilt milk.

I wish you the best in your recovery, don't ever give up trying. If you don't try you will not improve.

Peter

PS: post op I had a large DVT left leg and a pulmony embolism (blood clot in the lung) and I am claiming a 100% recovery.

[Candice]

Pooky,
I am sorry to hear about your condition. It is hard for me to relate, as I have never experienced a stroke before, but I am studying Speech Pathology and hope to work with the neurogenic aspect of the field. You mentioned that your speech is pretty unintelligible...I was wondering if you are receiving speech therapy? I know you mentioned your PT and OT were very helpful. If you aren't receiving speech therapy, my advise would be to go see a speech pathologist.

Best wishes & hang in there!
- Candice

[Pooky]

Candice,

To answer your question, I was going to speech therapy, but I was discharged last month (I was going once a week, since January). I guess I don't think my speech is good, but others do.

[Candice]

Pooky,
Did you feel like you made any improvement during speech therapy? I was curious to know what merited the speech pathologist ending your therapy.

- Candice