Neurological studies have shown that if stroke symptoms are recognized within the first three hours it’s possible to reverse the effects. Therefore, recognizing stroke symptoms is crucial to overcoming long term effects of stroke. Stroke recovery can take months or years to recover from. In some cases full recovery may never happen because of neurological damage.
The brain is a very complex organ controlling the entire body functions and senses. Any disruption with the brain will cause the other areas of the body to function erratically or cease to function. This is how a stroke afflicts, disrupting the brain causing it to lose functioning capabilities of other parts of the body. There are two types of strokes.
- Blockage in the arteries that carrying blood to the brain.
- Bursting of a blood vessel leaking blood into the brain tissue
How the stroke affects the body depends on the type of stroke and the location. The stroke effects are:
- Paralysis on either side of the body
- Problem with vision in both eyes or just one
- A sudden or abrupt change in behavior
- Loss of memory
- Problem speaking or garbled speech
- Memory loss
- Slow uncertain body movements
Understanding and recognizing the five stroke symptoms:
1. If someone has a sudden attack of weakness or numbness of the face or limbs on one side of the body.
2. If they suddenly become confused. They are unable to understand you or what you are saying. Are they having trouble speaking or unable to talk? Is their speech garbled and unclear? Look to see if their mouth droops on one side.
3. Their eyesight changes experiencing blurred or double vision in the eyes.
4. They have a sense of balance loss, dizziness, or inability to walk. If they are standing, are they standing upright? If they are walking, are they hunching over and having a hard time walking? If they are sitting, are they leaning to one side?
5. They suddenly develop a severe headache for no apparent reason.
There is a simple method or quick test to see if a person is suffering from a stroke. Have the person do the following tasks to see how they react.
- Ask them to smile. Notice if they can smile. Can they smile?
- Ask them to speak to you. Can they talk?
- Ask them to raise their arms above their head. Can they move both arms up?
- Ask them to stick out their tongue. Does the tongue droop or slant to one side rather than coming straight out of their mouth?
If the person has difficulty in performing any of these tasks, they probably have suffered a stroke and should seek immediate medical attention. Stroke symptoms may be temporary lasting for a few minutes or even hours. Do not ignore any of these stroke symptoms even if the stroke symptoms seem to disappear and the person appears to be fine. Seek out medical attention! If the stroke is caused by a blood clot, treatment must be within three hours for medication to work.