Tightness in wrist, lack of feeling in fingertips

About stroke Physical effects
1

Hi everyone,

My name is Andrew and im 56 years old.

Im looking to see if anyone has suffered anything similar to myself.

Around 5 weeks ago one Saturday morning i found i had pins and needles in my arm, shortly after i noticed my foot and leg felt numb, i was having a shave and realised my face was numb, all down the one side. It was strange as i never felt anything nor unwell in the slightest other than this numbness and pins and needles. I phoned NHS 24 and that evening was admitted to hospital.

I was in hospital for 9 nights as i went through various scans, MRI and CT and tests. I was diagnosed with having a small stroke and told i suffer from high blood pressure.

Since i came home from hospital my foot is better and i have movement although stiff at times, its not perfect. I can feel a slight cold numbness in parts of my face, sometimes feels worse than other times, maybe when showering and shaving.

My biggest concern however is my wrist and hand. My wrist feels like i have an extremely tight watch on and my hand has pins and needles and i have no great feeling in my finger tips, its like when you have used superglue and had it on your finger tips, you cant feel anything until its removed. When i touch material, clothes or bedsheets it feels like they are wet.

When in hospital i raised my concerns about this and was told it may take weeks or months but it should ease and get back to normal.

Two weeks ago i arranged a telephone call with my GP asking him if there was any treatment or anything that can be done about my wrist and hand as i find it hard to believe after 9 days and all these tests you leave hospital and thats the end of it.

My GP showed no empathy and told me he thinks i don't realise i have had  a stroke and this condition may possibly be for life. To be honest i got quite a shock at this.

This week i have had a consultation with an Osteopath and next week start  physiotherapy and acupuncture.

My question is has anyone else suffered from this this and what is their experiences?

Many thanks

Andrew

 

 

 

2

Hi Andrew, I am five years post stroke. My physio told me the leg and foot improve faster than the arm and hand because they perform less complex functions. I was told to utilise my weak arm and hand as much as possible. I also had what felt like frozen patches on the stroke side of my face and some numbness in the lips. The face issues disappeared over time.

After five years I have good use of my weak arm and hand, but the area round my shoulder always feels tight, even though it isn't. My left hand still lacks a great deal of sensitivity and is certainly not as good as I would like it to be.

However, my stroke was probably bigger than yours and you will probably see more improvement as time goes by. I was lucky, however, to have had quite a bit of physio, but not all areas provide adequate support and the situation is worse in the current pandemic.

3

Many thanks for the reply John. I have what is like a cold shadow above my lip on my bad side.

That is helpful. 

4

I know it sounds harsh, but your GP is probably right. Even a small stroke has damaged a very small part of your brain and it will not repair. Its just how much the rest of your brain can adapt and take over the tasks that the permanently damaged part can no longer do. 

Im am 5 years post stroke and nothing feels like it did pre stroke and Ive come to accept it never will. 

There have been small improvements for me, even in the last year or two so I certainly dont agree that there is no improvement after 2 years. 

5

Dear Andrew

I have no doubt that things do not return to normal. Its impossible. You are a changed person. However, things will improve and you will get a new normal. Maybe a better new normal than before.

no two strokes are the same.

Many of us get good recovery during the first two years, but there is also often some recovery after two years.

I got good improvements when i tried gentle yoga, wasnt expecting that.

Aftercare for stroke survivors is atrocious. It is the cinderella ailment.

you had an exceptionally long stay in hospital. Please dont ignore the BP.

be positive and smile a lot. You sre doing really well

colin

6

Hello Andrew, 

Trust your intuition. I had 4-5 minor strokes and then a major one in September. I get continuous funny physical feelings, some lesser and others I am chasing up through my GP, if at least, for peace of mind. It's disconcerting I know, I asked my doctor if he they had covered cerebellar strokes at medical school, his answer was, "they would have", so unless a GP has a special interest in strokes, generally from my experience, they only really know the fundamentals. If you have prolonged concern, I would push for a referral with a stroke consultant at the hospital where you were treated. I found these consultations to be very effective if you prepare questions before your visit. Unfortunately, it is true, once ejected from post-emergency care, we are left to our own devices but at least we have Stroke Org and other community organisations that we can connect with. 

In my experience, I have found it useful to test and monitor my own symptoms and do as much research as possible. For instance, I have visual distortion which comes and goes. So, I have made mental notes on when it appears, what may trigger it, when it subsides, what may relieve it, et cetera. I find this is useful feedback for medical practitioners. 

One of the other comments on this thread said something very useful, we become new people in a sense, and yes, maybe better people than we may have been previously. It makes one think about everything in one's life.