Using a mirror to create the illusion that a
person's paralyzed limb moves in tandem with a healthy one appears
to speed recovery from stroke. The optical illusion appears to
work faster than conventional treatment and suggests the mind
plays a powerful role in the body's recovery
Stroke Rehbiliation: For most stroke
patients, the rehabilitation process includes nursing,
occupational therapy (OT), physical therapy (PT), therapeutic
recreation (TR) and speech therapy (or speech language therapy,
SLP). OT involves exercise and training to help the stroke
patient relearn everyday activities, sometimes called the
Activities of daily living (ADLs), such as eating and drinking,
dressing, bathing, cooking, reading and writing, and toileting.
Therapeutic recreation works on several areas including problem
solving, improving movement and re-entry into the community
through familiar, new, and adaptive leisure skills. Speech and
language therapy is appropriate for patients who have problems
understanding speech or written words, or problems forming
speech. Speech therapists also assess a person's ability to
safely swallow after a stroke.
Stroke rehabilitation can last from a few days up to several
months. Most return of function is seen in the first few days
and weeks and then falls off, if only traditional OT, PT, TR and
SLP are used. In contrast, brain repair, neurogenesis, and
neural rewiring can eventually be enhanced significantly
medically long after this short therapeutic window.
Wikipedia
On the morning of December 10, 1996, Jill Bolte
Taylor, a thirty-seven-year-old Harvard-trained
brain scientist, experienced a massive stroke
when a blood vessel exploded in the left side of
her brain. A neuroanatomist by profession, she
observed her own mind completely deteriorate to
the point that she could not walk, talk, read,
write, or recall any of her life, all within the
space of four brief hours. As the damaged left
side of her brain--the rational, grounded,
detail- and time-oriented side--swung in and out
of function, Taylor alternated between two
distinct and opposite realties: the euphoric
nirvana of the intuitive and kinesthetic right
brain, in which she felt a sense of complete
well-being and peace; and the logical,
sequential left brain, which recognized Jill was
having a stroke, and enabled her to seek help
before she was lost completely.
Ten days after helping the New England Patriots win
the 2005 Super Bowl, 31-year-old middle linebacker
Bruschi suffered a debilitating stroke that left his
future uncertain. Initially he planned to retire, but
as he began to recover, a process that included
surgery to repair the hole in his heart that
precipitated the stroke, the lure of football
beckoned. Bruschi learned much about stroke from
doctors who treated him and cleared him to play again.
After serious disagreement with his wife, he won her
support for his return to the game only eight and a
half months after suffering the stroke. His comeback
initially met with much skepticism from the media and
fans alike, but Bruschi writes that he was determined
to overcome the obstacles thrown up by those ignorant
of strokes. He also found a new audience of fans:
stroke survivors across the country, many who wrote
him letters in support. Bruschi, who went on to play
the 2005 and 2006 seasons, is planning to be in the
lineup this season as well and is now a spokesman for
the American Stroke Association. His story is a
compelling and convincing one that will appeal to both
football fans and those affected by strokes.
(Publishers Weekly, July 30, 2007)
Hospital stays after a stroke are often short compared
to the lengthy period of rehabilitation and gradual
return of function. After a Stroke concentrates on the
home recovery process, assisting patients and their
families in the transition from patient back to
person. Author Cleo Hutton, herself a twelve-year
stroke survivor and nurse, gives readers tips she
learned and used herself during her recovery. She
addresses topics such as communication, emotional
liability, safety issues, personal care, relaxation
techniques, and intimacy issues. The book frankly
discusses self-esteem issues and using humor as a
healing tool — no subject is off limits. Over 300 tips
cover everything from dressing, hair care, cooking,
and airline travel to using a computer and alleviating
pain. After a Stroke describes in detail how to
accomplish daily living routines, combat fatigue,
enjoy recreational activities, and how to turn stroke
deficits into assets. Hutton leaves no gaps in
relating what families and fellow stroke survivors
need to know to live a full life post stroke.
