I dont usually take part in online discussions, fear of sounding stupid. My past few months healthwise has been a roller coaster. Beginning of july i was diagnoised with Leukaemia, total shocker!! Then in August i landed in A+E...a stroke. Talk about taking the wind out of your sails. I feel I was fortunate, treated quickly and little or no lasting effects...emotional more than physical. I actually feel more anxious about the stroke than the Leukaemia. My biggest fear....will it happen again... Is it normal to have this niggling worry from you close your eyes at night until you open your eyes in the morning.
Hello Bizzybee, I think the fear of another stroke is something we have all had at one time or another and night time, just before sleep, tends to be really quiet and your mind can race away with all sorts of worries, but in the early days of recovery the fear of another stroke is common. I occasionally still worry about it as the stroke I had happened during the night as far as I'm aware - I woke the following morning and was totally disorientated and confused.
The fear of another stroke does become less as time goes on and you will more than likely be taking medication which will prevent another stroke. Once you get your sleep pattern organised you'll feel less anxious, this may take a little while but little by little you'll notice improvement in how you feel I'm sure.
I'm sorry to hear about you being diagnosed with Leukaemia, it must be hard dealing with that aswell. Hope you have some support at home but know we are all here for you. Ask anything you're worried about.
Ann
Dear BB
very common to have irrational fear for a few weeks. Your brain doesnt feel pain, but it does not like having a stroke. So it kicks in the Basic fight or flight reaction.
Many of us will have that fear when we see the location. For me, the floor alongside my bed.
I slept with a light on for several weeks.
The fear will subside.
Dont worry about sounding stupid. Just write what you feel. We are mostly survivors and we know how the words dont flow and how the memory locks up. Your post is far more sensible than the words i have written in the past.
Sleep is very important for our recovery. i didnt sleep well for some time.
The first month post stroke is critical. Once the month has passed you should be safer than most from having another stroke.
best wishes
Colin
Thankyou Colin for taking the time to reply x
Thankyou Ann and yes I have a wonderful family supporting me. A boy and a girl, mind you im sure i dont need to tell you which of the two would run to my aid if need be lol. Boys!!! I have my husband too and despite him being in poor health type 1 diabetic, he supports me in every way.
Im very fortunate to have great kids and a good hubby x
That's great, sounds like you have really good support. Take each day as it comes and don't worry about the bad days.
I used to listen to Calm stories on you tube when I had trouble sleeping and these helped me a lot.You can get some of them free on you tube so I would go through there to find them. They helped me get off to sleep when I was feeling anxious in the early days of recovery, worth a try anyway. One of my favourites is the Nordland Night Train read by Eric Braa, I don't think I've ever heard it right to the end I've usually nodded off. It's worth a try anyway.
Hope you're feeling well.
Ann
Hello Bizzybee,
From my experience as having recently had a stroke in September, yes, I don't want to go through all that again. The anxiety of having another wears me down. I am uber-aware of any shifts in my physical state, I have a few little exercises I do to test my stability, these are coordination and vision exercises, and if I can do them satisfactorily, it helps calm the worry. To do this I find a restful spot, quiet and without tech stimulus. Menial distraction also helps me, stuff that pulls my mind away from overthinking. At night, I run through my head some menial stuff too, this also helps distract my mind and allows me to descend into sleep better than just allowing my mind to wander. Sorry to hear that your health was compounded by a stroke as well.
My situation is too recent to comment on what it will be like down the track but this is it for me at the moment.