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Hi There,

I had my stroke on the 29/09/2018. It was a PICA stroke ischematic that affected my left cerebellar and left medulla. 

-I couldn’t walk as I lost my balance, which is still current, I had to learn how to sit up then learn how to walk again , which is still very unsteady to say the least
 
-My left side is decidedly weaker than my right side now
 
- I couldn’t swallow, hence I had a PEG inserted in my stomach, which basically is a plastic tube going externally from the outside to the inside of my stomach, I couldn’t even swallow my own salvia, after months of rebelitation I finally was able to swallow to some extent and have the PEG removed
 
-I suffer from  dizziness 24/7 due to the nature of where the stroke occurred in the brain
 
- My right side of my body has no sensory feeling in regards to temperature
 
- My eyesight has degraded since having the stroke 
 
- The stroke affected my prostate, so i also required an operation to rectify that which has now left me sexually incompetent.
 
- I have suffered depression since the stroke and was committed to Cooinda Mental Health hospital twice with periods of stays being approximately  7-8 weeks at a time
 
- I am on a considerable amount of medication for the rest of my life now due to the stroke
 
- Initially my cognitive skills were impaired, however they seem to have improved over time
 
- I spent probably more than a total of 6 months in and out of varying hospitals
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Welcome. I can understand why you were depressed. You were through so much right after your stroke.

Most importantly- congratulations on your swallow test!!! That is a great Accomplishment. 

 

As you probably already know, the first few years of any traumatic event, stroke for us, is the roughest. We aren't accustomed to the changes we have gone through and that could cause anyone to be depressed but a lot of folks have , over time, began to find new ways of doing things to make out lives more tolerable.

I hope by talking to the great people here, we can assist in your journey out of depression.

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Liam, Welcome to Strokenet! I'm glad you found us, but sorry that you have a reason to be here. We're a great bunch of people who also have reason to be here. It sounds like you had what I had- a tsunami of a stroke. Which means to me that you have a number of issues with which to cope with at one time. MY SUGGESTION IS NOT TO TRY COPING WITH, OR EVEN THINKING ABOUT ,EVERYTHING AT ONCE. TAKE SMALLER BITES AND CHEW THAT ONE UP BEFORE YOU TAKE THE NEXT ONE. HAVE YOU GUESSED YET THAT I HAD A PEG TOO?  I couldn't swallow at first either, and had to be taught how to eat.I still choke sometimes, but I eat a regular diet, and have done so for the last 13 yrs. Eating does get better with practice and time. A lot of things may get better over time.

   I have another suggestion for you: For your depression try to find a neuropsychiatrist. They are specialists in treating things like depression following a stroke. Good luck. Becky

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Thanks Becky so much for the note. Yes I managed to get over the swallowing after about 2 months and just eat normally now, no pEG etc. My biggest problem is ongoing dizziness, I have been told to do Gaze Stabilisation exercises, just started them 2 weeks ago, not sure if they will work or not, haven't noticed a change yet. I also do balance exercises, plus I walk about 2.6klms per day. Did you suffer from dizziness? If so any tips?

 

 

Thank you

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Thanks Becky so much for the note. Yes I managed to get over the swallowing after about 2 months and just eat normally now, no pEG etc. My biggest problem is ongoing dizziness, I have been told to do Gaze Stabilisation exercises, just started them 2 weeks ago, not sure if they will work or not, haven't noticed a change yet. I also do balance exercises, plus I walk about 2.6klms per day. Did you suffer from dizziness? If so any tips?

 

 

Thank you

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Welcome Liam from a fellow Aussie. I was carer to my late husband Ray who died in 2012. Ray had many strokes, seven majors and others that caused minor damage. We found that trying to get over one problem at a time was the way to go. This lasted for 13 years.

 

I know from his experience that it is  very frustrating when you want it all fixed at once. Hopefully over time things will improve. I was Ray's full time carer because of his balance problems which puzzled the neurologist until they discovered he had also had a brain stem bleed. This was picked up eventually in a CT scan. 

 

All I can do is hope you find the kind of physiotherapists we did who coached Ray back from every stroke until the last one which sent him to a nursing facility for the last 13 months of his life. We were fortunate to have 12 good years before that happened. Life after stroke is different but there can still be good times.

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Thanks for your note. Sorry to hear about your late husband Ray. The thing I struggle with the most is dizziness, hopefully that will improve over time. Unfortunately I am on my own and have to do everything myself which I have had to do from the day after my stroke, hence motivation is a constant battle with me on a daily basis specially when I hardly see any improvements. Your husband must have been pretty tough to withstand all those strokes.

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Liam, Welcome to the club from a NZ based victim. That was a terrible attack to suffered and I can only add to the advice of those who tell you to take one bite at a time in overcoming your problems. Many seem insurmountable at first but to persist in your attempts is the only way to beat them

Deigh

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Hi Liam, Another Aussie here. I'm in Melbourne in the second Covid lockdown, which sucks. Where are you based?  My stroke was vertebral artery dissection in August 2010, so I'm coming up to my 10 year anniversary.  I lost my complete left side, but have with much time and work got a lot of function back, and am now walking unaided and working on learning to run again. 

This thing will kick you in the teeth at first but it does improve so long as you keep working at it.  I was very relieved to not have swallowing issues, but I did/do have emotional lability and fatigue issues.

This thing is a long slow climb up from the bottom of the well. Hang in there and keep crawling.

-Heather

 

On 7/8/2020 at 11:24 AM, becky1 said:

 I have another suggestion for you: For your depression try to find a neuropsychiatrist. They are specialists in treating things like depression following a stroke.

Note that there are very different specialists and therapies between countries, so watch out for different terminologies. Neuropsych in Australia works on your processing and cognitive impacts from brain injury, not so much on general psychiatric health. So depending on what they find may actually refer you to phychologist (talk therapy) or general psychiatrist (medical/drug intervention). Having said that the Neuropsych was very useful for understanding my cognitive impacts and return to work planning.  They tend to work with your OT.

As you have probably already worked out a Neurologist here is useless for anything other than physical brain health. If you want functional recovery assistance look for a Rehabilitation Specialist, your GP or physiotherapist can refer you.

 

Good luck and keep at it

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  • 1 month later...

Welcome Liam.

Sandgroper here!

Please keep sharing with everyone. 

Lots of great support on this site.

 

I call us Aussies (and kiwi Deigh) the night shift!

 

💚👑

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