very encourageingprogress.
Peter
I had a stroke 5 years ago which affected my right side. Although I can do some things with my right hand I still unable to hold a pen or knife which is very frustrating
My husband had his stroke 12 months ago and he has the same problems as you did. Did you have continual therapy or do it yourself?
From your experience is there anything I can do or get to help him?
Thanks for any ideas
I also have lost mobility on my right side and have to use my left hand for everything. I find it particularly a disadvantage as I have no control if I fall towards my right side. I have found filling in colouring books useful in getting more accuracy with my left hand
I had my stroke around 18 months ago applied for mobility but because I can walk and sit up, I wasn't suitable,despite loosing the whole of my left hand side disabled but not disabled enough? Go figure!?
Hi Nick I think you just have to press on and do the best you can on your own. I feel that as I can do the basic things that's all the doctor expect from someone who has had a stroke but obviously I'm hoping for something better. Good luck with your progress
Dear Herb.I am very gradually getting more used to using my right hand but it is a slow process! I have tried most advice given by fellow contributors and I will try what you suggest. have had some success when writing birthday cards,only printing so far. I have not been able to do cursive writing yet. There is so much to re learn again! Still I keep on trying. Thanks for your message. Lilian
Hi Marie,
hope you also are making progress -I have found that even walking up and down in the water helps and eventually I hope to be well enough to enjoy an aerobics class. Good luck and keep going
I'm also right handed and lost the use of my right arm and leg. I still have the handwriting of a 6 year old, mainly because I use my tablet for most things, but my dexterity has improved over the years. My right hand can grip, but that's about all it can do. Exercise helps for everything else though, although too much can be counterproductive.
Thank you for your reply Sheila. I also use my tablet, left handed and do not need to write often. Like you my writing is very immature. I can grip but use my left hand to work my electric wheelchair. I can fasten my shoe laces but not my bra! How long has it been since you had your stroke? I do exercise every day but progress is slow. Lilian
Dear Nick - my stroke was at the end of 2018 and whilst I can walk unaided for 15-20 minutes,I'm struggling with repetitive physio on my left hand /arm but will keep trying - I ride a staticbike for 20 minutes every day and that is keeping my left knee supple - but there are no magic fixes sadly - it's a case of trying to keep going with what you can manage each day - good luck though - you're not alone !!
Best wishes
Chris
Because I live distant from the hospital I had to tackle recovery on my own. We had three therapists come to the house, Speech, Physiotherapy and Occupational. They all said I was doing as well on my own as I could have done with their help.
I strongly recommend the book Stronger after Stroke by Peter G Levine. It became my Bible.
Deigh
Thanks to continual exercising my finger strength has improved tremendously but I still have to find a fat pen to write with and have selected specially thick handled dining cutlery to make me less clumsy.
On my daily walk I carry a twig in my hand and continually try to break it. Its only a twig so if it drops I can leave it and find another from the garden next time!
Deigh
Fortunately my taste buds recovered from their early state following my stroke and I enjoy a red wine daily, plus a (very small) whisky!
My sense of humour recovered very quickly, encouraged by visits from my three sons who would not have expected anything different.
Deigh
Deigh,
You're a man after my own heart, I enjoy a red wine daily, and I have a jiggle of brandy every night.
I wish my taste buds would return. I now like ice cream which I disliked before and it is not the same as a glass of wine, chilled muscadet! Lilian
Dear Chris, my stroke was at the end of 2018 also. I can walk with a rollator a short way. I walk each day and I get very tired but like you say I keep trying. I am not sure what 'mobility' is but I don't qualify for it I don't think.Lilian
I see you are a winemaker, very interesting hobby, I used to make my own whisky but clumsiness after stroke made me give up. I see you are a writer too, tell me more and how has the stroke affected your talent? I've written a sci fi book published on the internet. Wrote a book about asthma and lost lots of cash marketting it. I'm in the middle of a blood and thunder but have temporarily lost interest!
Have written my life story but this is just for family consumption, the chapter about my stroke was the last entry and is still under construction since I'm still improving after six years.
Deigh
I've got summer grapes to harvest, so going to ferment a batch for 2023, sadly, due to recovery duration, I haven't made any fruit wines this year. I was thinking of a haw and elderberry, that might still be possible. I'd love to make my own brandy, but for now, my head couldn't focus on the process. Creatively, the stroke hasn't affected me much. The most noticeable cognitive issue has been turning a phrase, I used to be able to turn a nice phrase with a bit of contemplation, but now I write more like an automaton and have to go back and address my sentences to inject some life into them. Functional issues are mainly things like mixing up letters or dropping articles which means more time spent editing than before.
A symptom of cerebellar stroke syndrome is not being able to recognise patterns. I was fortunate that while in hospital, I had with me, John Cowper Powys's historical novel, Owen Glendower. So, I read every day, at first it was difficult to glean just what had occurred in the story, paragraphs were difficult to connect, although the actual sentences were easily understood. Straight out of hospital, I tackled a 500 odd page biography, forcing myself to read several chapters every night. Writing-wise, I got stuck into another book I had almost finished, I struggled with the same thing. Individual steps of the story in sentences were no big issue, but framing it within the narrative was a task. I then hit a low patch, and found myself spending more time in bed than in my study. I tried writing in bed, bringing notebooks and sketchbooks in with me, but found the space not condusive to any kind of serious work.
Interestingly enough, I had edited my last book, unbeknownst at the time, during a period of having six transient ischaemic attacks. I think I did pretty well. At the moment, I have taken a short hiatus from long-form narratives to concentrate on a small publication of poems about stroke. I have never seriously written poety before, so this is all new to me, and a gentle way to re-establish some sort of writing momentum, as chronic fatigue, and interruptions of ennui have made any sort of writing discipline an enormous challenge at the moment.
I enjoy a good sci-fi read. I find the whole marketing process of writing to be tedious. My books have mainly gone into libraries and independent bookshops, which was my objective as I prefer the idea that people can borrow, and I get a small royalty payment which suits me fine. I hope you continue to write, and find the hwyl to carry on with it.
I understand your problems. I started to read again in the first few days in hospital. I found that a paragraph was all I could handle intitially and would even forget the contents. This phrase did not last long but even then a page at a time was my limit and had to ask myself questions on what I had just read, sometimes the answer was nil!
I was totally bored out of my mind at that time, my brain wanted my fingers and my legs to do all sorts of things that I would have done at home and those items seemed to be annoyed that the brain was not giving enough instruction on how to achieve them.
The brain overworking continued for many months and was usually followed fortunately by exhaustion and sleep. Even now after 6 years the brain will not switch off completly and I have a secret admiration for an elderley male neighbour who I can see (when I'm in the kitchen washing up the dishes) sitting in his atrium spending most of his day staring into space.
Regards
Deigh