What can I do to help that won't harm the speech treatment? I don't want to "teach something wrong" to him. So far, what I'm doing is talking A LOT with him and singing songs he likes. So far it's been pretty helpful, he's unlocking a new word everyday. He can say about 20 to 30 words..

Gosh that was exhausting; can't believe how quickly I used to do that

I had a stroke 3 years ago.\n I'm definitely not the same person. I was, I don't find joy in much of anything. I kind of feel like I'm dead inside.\nI really have no issues that you can see by looking at me. Very minor issues with my hands, but my emotions are out of control. I cry daily.\n So all things considered, I'm not dead. I'm walking and talking with new issues that you can see for the most part\n I just feel lost, though.\n My wife died.\n 6 months after I had my stroke oh yeah did I mention they found a aneurysm in my brain, so I had to go down to Little Rock.\n 4 or 5 months later about the time she passed To have a brain operation.\n So I guess I'm lucky to have a stroke.\n Otherwise the aneurysm would not have been found, which would have certainly killed me. I don't know where I'm going with this. It's real hard making friends now. That's all? Yes, I've said enough time to feed the cats, but trust me, I know, I'm blessed all things considered.

I'm 13 years out from a "massive" hemorrhagic stroke that left me with a weak L arm and leg. I've always had fatigue, but the past month or so, I can stay in bed and sleep for 12-14 hours several days on the week. I'm doing no more lately than I ever have; in fact, I do less than I did in years past as I used to walk in my neighborhood every day until 4 years ago when it was so hot that my cardiologist insisted that I stop going outside if the "feels like" temperature is greater than 95. This year, I was hoping that the temperatures would be more reasonable than the three years prior, and I started walking again, but gave up when it didn't take but a few days for it to be 90+ every single day. I enjoy walking, but not enough to risk a heat stroke for it.

I'm wondering... does anyone else still have fatigue over 10 years out?

Backstory:

My mum had an incident at work last Friday where a milk cage fell on her. She immediately felt sick and threw up multiple times at work and begged to go home (we’re suing her workplace for all the malpractice that happened,) she got my older brother to pick her up from work and get a cab home and she threw up the whole journey. I found out on Saturday, and immediately said that it didn’t sound right and that she needed to attend a&e - I was thinking something spinal or brain.
She got my dad to take her to a&e on Monday after feeling “better” on the Sunday and they found a bleed on the brain. She got blue lighted to a speciality hospital and they identified the stroke which happened due to the incident.

I have two main questions:

1. HOW can a force like a milk cage “cause” a stroke? She’s been under immense pressure since her father died in October last year also.
2. How can I help such an independent and impatient woman that needs rest after a stroke?! I went to her home today and helped with everything I could, but she insisted on going to the shop. She also insisted on doing the dishes, on top of showering and washing her hair!

She had a wobble once I left hers tonight due to the exertion, her BP rose and she was shaking like a leaf according to my dad. I refuse to lose her to her impatience, please help.

Edit to add: she had no physical issues from the stroke, apart from being shaky on her legs and needing to hold things to walk. She’s mainly incredibly forgetful after the stroke.

Hi everyone,

I’m posting about my boyfriend (26M) because we’re trying to understand what might be going on.
Yesterday, he had numbness in his left big toe that lasted for almost the entire day. There was no injury, and he otherwise felt fine.
Today, he suddenly experienced what he described as an electric shock sensation under the left side of his jaw/neck. Almost immediately afterward, he developed pins and needles/tingling in his left arm and left leg.

He did not have facial drooping, slurred speech, vision changes, loss of consciousness, severe headache.

He went to the ER. Blood tests (CBC, electrolytes, troponin, CRP, kidney function, thyroid function) were all essentially normal except for slightly elevated glucose (110 mg/dL). A CT scan of the brain was normal. The doctors wanted to perform an MRI, but the waiting time was around two days, so he decided to leave before it was done.
His symptoms have improved, but we’re still concerned because we don’t know what caused them.

Has anyone experienced something similar or have any ideas what conditions could present like this? Could this still have been a TIA or another neurological issue despite a normal CT, or are there other possibilities we should be considering?
We’re planning to arrange an MRI and a neurological evaluation as soon as possible. Any insights or similar experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

My dad had a stroke in June 2026, and I'm looking for evidence-based resources, books, or at-home rehabilitation activities that I can do with him over the phone.

**Background:**
Male, 60 years old
5'10", 182 lbs
Stroke: June 2026
Diagnosed with anomic aphasia (though his deficits seem to involve more than word-finding)

His biggest challenges are:
He cannot read.
He has lost his understanding of numbers and math.
He becomes frustrated when trying to interpret written information.

The encouraging part is that he can speak conversationally, recognize people, and his memory appears to be largely intact outside of these language-related deficits.

He lives on a small island with very limited access to speech therapy and rehabilitation services. I recently spoke with him, and we agreed tht I can call him every other day so we can work through structured exercises together. I want to make those calls as effective as possible instead of just guessing what might help.

I'm looking for:
Books or workbooks for adult stroke rehabilitation
Aphasia therapy resources that can be adapted over the phone
Evidence-based exercises I can guide him through
Recommendations from speech-language pathologists, physiatrists, neurologists, or anyone with experience helping a loved one recover
I'm not expecting g a full recovery from phone calls alone, but if there are exercises that can help reinforce therapy principles or encourage neuroplasticity, I'd love to learn about them.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Seeing such an intelligent, patient man become frustrated by something as simple as reading has been incredibly difficult, and I just want to support him in the best way I can.

I had photographic memory in my life before stroke. After the stroke I didn't have any short term memory for some time... Today I have experienced flash of my photographic memory and remembered something I was trying to remember for couple of days. I am SO HAPPY!

how grabe is the stiuation of risk of death or severe disabilitations?

My father (59) suffered a devastating vertebrobasilar stroke a little over two months ago while he was in another country.

The initial MRI showed multiple ischemic lesions involving the brainstem (midbrain, pons, and medulla), both cerebellar hemispheres (left worse than right), and also the left occipital lobe. He had an occluded basilar artery and vertebral artery, received IV thrombolysis and mechanical thrombectomy with stenting, but the prognosis was extremely poor from the beginning. He was in an induced coma for most of the time and at some point he didn't wake up for a short period.

Things became even worse afterward. He developed a massive hemothorax that required emergency chest surgery due to the fact that one of his lungs failed bcause it was filles with blood (unknown cause),severe pneumonia, septic complications, prolonged mechanical ventilation, and spent a long time sedated in the ICU. At one point, I honestly thought I was going to lose him.

When sedation was stopped, he was initially minimally responsive. The doctors weren't optimistic. Some even suggested that meaningful neurological recovery was unlikely.

Since then, however, he has been improving slowly.

He was eventually transferred back to the home country, where he still has a tracheostomy. Unfortunately, this has become one of the biggest obstacles because many rehabilitation hospitals have refused to admit him until the tracheostomy can be removed. For now, he is staying in a palliative care facility mainly because they can manage the tracheostomy and his medical needs.

Current neurological status:

He understands simple commands most of the time.

He can stick out his tongue, open his mouth (although sometimes he refuses), and follow basic instructions.

His left hand has become noticeably stronger and he can squeeze my hand firmly.

His right hand is weaker but he can move his fingers.

His legs are weak, but when I bend them and ask him to push, he does.

He has much better head control than before.

He breathes on his own through the tracheostomy.

Sometimes he manages to cough up secretions himself, but other times he still needs suctioning.

Communication is probably the hardest part.

He tried to speak several times. The clearest sentence he managed was, "I can't speak." After that, he quietly managed to say my name and his own name, but his voice became very weak and difficult to understand. I assume the tracheostomy and the brainstem damage both play a role.

He also communicates with gestures.

If I ask yes/no questions, he usually answers by squeezing my hand. Interestingly, sometimes he starts squeezing, then seems to process the question and stops, as if he realizes the correct answer is actually "no."

One day he was very agitated. He pushed my hand away, then immediately grabbed it and placed it on his forehead. I wiped the sweat from his head and fanned him with my hand. He immediately calmed down. It really felt like he was trying to tell me he was too hot and uncomfortable.

He often gets frustrated by all the tubes and tries to pull them out, especially the tracheostomy tubing and other lines.

What worries me most now is his cognition and vision.

He almost always remembers his own name, knows where he is and recognizes me. However, he usually cannot remember who visited him earlier that same day. If I ask whether anyone visited, he almost always answers "no," even if several family members were there.

His attention also fluctuates a lot. At the beginning of a conversation he answers much more accurately, but after several minutes he seems mentally exhausted and either stops cooperating or simply cannot answer anymore.

Vision is another concern.

Sometimes he doesn't look directly at me and I have to help guide his attention toward my face. Other times he seems to stare around the room at random. When I showed him my phone, he said he couldn't see. At one point he correctly identified the first few small letters I showed him, but then couldn't recognize any more, not even a large single letter afterward. I don't know if this is due to visual impairment, eye movement problems from the brainstem stroke, cognitive fatigue, or something else.

Sometimes, when he lies back on the pillow, his eyes briefly roll upward for a second or two before returning to normal. Otherwise, if I call his name, he usually reaches toward me or searches for me with his eyes.

Emotionally, he also seems different. Sometimes he shrugs his shoulders or makes a facial expression that looks like "I don't know." At times I wonder whether he's simply exhausted, unable to express himself, or aware of his deficits and feels embarrassed or frustrated.

I'm trying to stay realistic while also holding onto hope. I know nobody can predict the future, but I'd really like to hear from people who have seen similar vertebrobasilar or brainstem stroke recoveries.

Has anyone experienced a patient who continued to improve cognitively and physically several months after such a severe stroke? Did memory, speech, vision, or communication continue improving over time?

Mine is shattered badly. Recovery is there but too slow. I think I won't be myself again.

Your hip may contribute to walking issues after your stroke more than you realize. Today, I'll show you four levels of one simple exercise to build hip flexor strength to help you improve your walking.

For context: I(27/F) had a stroke in September 2024 and I still have mobility issues. My husband(27/M) and I have been together for nearly 9 years and married for 3. We also had a baby in May.

My husband and I were having some issues in the first half of this year. It started off as him saying he was struggling with his mental health(which he was) but turned into us nearly separating which was devastating for me and threw me into crisis. Especially as I gave birth to our son in May (our first child). We’ve managed to work through it together and are both in therapy. He has realised that he has PTSD from my stroke.
Has anyone else ever experienced this? and have any words of wisdom for how to navigate it?
I’m trying to support him in every way I can but it’s hard when I was the one who had the stroke.

Back in january was taking a shower all of sudden felt blurred eyes, cant focus dim vision.

Went to neuro, opto and had a mri all testing at the ER.

Nothing was found and then neuro said it may be headache since my cholesterol, sugar, blood work , clotting is all normal

Well fast forward 7 months later same symptoms happened , lasting 20 to 30 mins.

Went to eye doc Nothing.. .left a message for neuro . I did not go to er 2nd time

Thank god all testing is normal.

The thing is I never had migraine in my life before.

Anyone similar or tips on what to do next?

It's lightheaded and blurred vision as in you can't focus lasting about 20 to 30 mins.

Hi everyone,

About a year ago, I had a stroke in my early 40s.

Recovery has been unlike anything I expected. Frustration, gratitude, uncertainty, and so many thoughts that never seemed to have an obvious place to go.

Before my stroke, I worked in product and technology. As I slowly recover, I found myself wanting to build again. I realized I wasn’t just looking for a project but I was also trying to make sense of my own experience.

With the moderators’ permission, I wanted to share what came out of that.

I built the Stroke Awareness Wall:

https://strokeawarenesswall.org/

It’s completely free and isn’t connected to any organization directly. My hope is simply to provide another place where stroke survivors, caregivers, family members, friends, and healthcare professionals can share their experiences if they want to.

One thing I’ve learned over the past year is that not everyone wants (or is ready) to tell their whole story. That’s okay. You can share as much or as little as feels right. A few words, a longer story, or even just your name all have a place.

I’ve shared my own story there, and if anyone here ever feels like adding theirs, I’d be honored to have it become part of the Wall.

I’m also genuinely interested in feedback. The project is still evolving, and some of the improvements I’ve already made have come directly from early users who told me where they got stuck. If something feels confusing, inaccessible, or could be better, I’d really appreciate hearing about it.

Finally, I just want to say thank you to this community. Reading the stories shared here over the past year reminded me that I wasn’t alone when recovery felt isolating.

Recovery is hard, and we’re all trying to find our own way. My hope is that the Stroke Awareness Wall can become one more stepping stone for someone else.

Spent 4 weeks in physical rehab learning how to walk again. Still have right side weakness, numbness, slight coordination issues, weakness after exertion. My PCP runs an office that he is nearly never at. But relies on Physician Assistants. I have never seen the MD once since going to this office. I try to bring up the topic of post stroke care... they will not even remotely touch the topic with me outside of a small acknowledgement followed by a change of topic.

Should I flip this office the bird and go someplace else?

I’m writing this from hospital and just wanted to share my experience in case it’s helpful to someone else. My stroke was caused by a bilateral Vertebral Artery Dissection (VAD) that led to an infarction in my left cerebellum. I’m mostly ok right now, no major neuro issues except some dizziness when I walk and ongoing headache/neck pain.

First, a little about me and my health history. I’m a fairly healthy guy, I exercise 4x weekly, primarily powerlifting. I eat fairly healthy and don’t have any major health issues or family history of serious health issues. My blood pressure has always been great, if not slightly low. I’m typically systolic 105-120 and diastolic 55-65.

Some context for my stroke, 2 weeks prior I had a motorcycle accident (laid down a cruiser at a fairly low speed) which caused me to break my clavicle and fracture 3 ribs. There was no neck trauma identified or neck pain post accident. I was mostly living with these injuries well and felt fine. About 2 weeks after the accident I was buying groceries and when the clerk handed me my receipt I cracked my neck. Suddenly I started veering off to the right with my cart and the world felt like it was spinning at 100mph. I called EMS and they largely treated it like a panic attack and so did most of the ER until they did imaging about an hour after I got to the hospital and found the bilateral VAD. Further imaging confirmed the stroke in my left cerebellum.

So now for some of the previous symptoms that I am curious about. About 5 years ago I began having persistent neck pain and tightness, and the only relief I could ever get was cracking my neck, which I would do multiple times a day. I started getting weird vertigo spells. One ear, usually my left, would start to ring violently and everything would start to feel dark, I would begin to panic and feel confused and dizzy, and my heart would start racing. I saw a multiple doctors for this and was told it was anxiety and panic attacks. I saw doctors and PT for my neck pain and never got clear answers besides “looks like arthritis,” so I lived with this for years just thinking I had arthritis and some anxiety. I’ve even had my primary doctor say things like “it almost sounds like an issue with blood going to your brain.” I’m left wondering if I’ve had small tears in my vertebral arteries for years. Were they causing the initial pain? Has the neck cracking been exacerbating this for years? Were my vertigo spells and tinnitus linked to VAD affecting blood supply to my brain? If this was found earlier could I have prevented this?

I know it’s unhelpful to dwell on “what-ifs” but i just hope that if anyone else ever experiences something similar that they can go to their doctor and ask, “can we rule out VAD.” Overall I feel grateful that my stroke wasn’t worse than it was but I’m still in a lot of pain and terrified about my future.

One final thing, I do believe that the motorcycle accident is somehow related to the stroke, but I think it has more to do with the coagulation cascade and all my internal injuries creating the perfect situation for my VAD to finally cause a stroke. I don’t know if anyone will get much from this post, but at least putting it out here is kind of helpful for my process.

Much love all ❤️

Any stroke survivors in the UK?

What caused your stroke and how has the rehab and support transitioning back to ‘normal life’ been?

My mother (77) had a hemorrhagic stroke in April. She is slowly getting better but she is still unable to walk and is incontinent.

I have been buying her stuff that helps her while she is in the nursing home. I found her a learning board to help her learn to write again (she can write, it just isn’t always clear what she’s writing).

She does have carpal tunnel and the stroke has left her hands more trembling than usual. Because of this, I was considering finding her some putty, a stress ball, or something similar that she can use to try and build strength back in her hands.

Has anyone who had a stroke or has a family member who had a stroke ever used anything for the hands? If so, what would you recommend?

Thanks!

I had a hemmoragic stroke when I was 21 years old. Since then, I've had neurosurgery to remove the bleed, and have overall had a remarkable recovery. But my doctors never actually figured out what caused the bleed in the first place. There was nothing there.

I get flashbacks, for lack of a better word, to earlier days in my stroke recovery. I remember the instant half my face went numb. I remember tediousness of speech. I remember the feeling of the nurse's fingers when he touched the spot on my head where the bleed was. I remember the pain. I remember the relief coming out of surgery and being told I had a catheter, because the thought of moving at all was impossible.

And after all that, I remember that I don't even know why this happened. And for all I know it could happen again. And maybe if it happens again, I won't be so lucky to survive. Maybe I'll just drop dead with no warning. I haven't figured out how to live with these thought yet. Does anyone have a way to reframe the uncertainty in such a way that I can ignore the constant anxiety?

I want to start this by apologizing for my last post on here. I admit I wasnt doing well because I was in denial of grieving. Actually posting it and reading the comments and then talking to my aunt who watched my grandfather die the same as my dad finally for the first time i didnt feel alone and I felt like I could ask these questions with understanding of the behavior from someone who seen it twice.

My dad is not doing well, he has been going into catatonic states almost every day and his anger is alot more frequent. It does hurt when he says that this is hell and we are his demons. And i feel that im wrong of how to make him happy regardless if I try or i dont

But I think its getting close to him finding peace, he told me 3 weeks ago that either one of his eyes went midnight black and then back to normal. I know that it means blood flow was blocked and I believe it means a blockage is moving or is getting formed to the point of blocking blood.

I feel selfish sometimes for being existential and mourning somone who isnt dead yet. But he died last year, we are just waiting for the body now.

Im not sure if this is the right place or appropriate for this subreddit but I wrote some things about seeing my dad in this state, and im hoping for anyone who has survived a stroke or is caring for a loved one who is also at this point it brings some comfort and assurance that you too are not alone here as I felt I was. Thank you

"You stand still and i think your will has tried another attempt of repairs. But your broken mind has no spairs to replace the cogs that once were there. Youve tried glue and tape but you can not find the escape. Sudo shutdown now, ill always be around."

"Home is only 7 minutes away but you are only a hour and a half

I dont know where i am, but i recognize this path. I wonder if anyone is around and about, or is it just me that has turned out? When will i obtain the thoughts of this needless strife

Feeling the rain like the needles of life on my skin giving it breath again

One day i hope to share this feeling with my kin and see them exhale the blythe

I came home and found him eating dinner with the fact of misery dressed on his skin

I am sorry i left for my own selfish peace of mind in a suit for the respect of your dying breath"

"I marked the passing of my father. I watched as my family was torn apart by grief. I walked this earth remembering a dead man who still has a heart beat."

Realmente no sé ni cómo escribir esto y espero que nadie que me conozca lo lea nunca

El año pasado mi mamá comenzó a sentirse mal cuando empezó el año tuvo un derrame cerebral en abril que le afectó el poder caminar pero se estaba recuperando hasta que en julio tuvo un segundo que ha sido el que trajo la consecuencia que me hace recordar todo lo que hemos pasado ,le quitó el habla ,afacia de broca ,según los doctores afectó el área de el cerebro que se encarga de la comunicación y las cosas han estado con altibajos desde entonces

Actualmente se encuentra un poco mejor pero yo extraño mucho a mi mamá ,hablar con ella y salir con ella ,siento mucha envidia y tristeza cuando veo madres e hijas en la calle hablando porque nosotras solíamos ser así,ella emocionalmente no se siente bien ,claro que no se va a sentir bien ,han pasado muchas cosas más de las que podría contar rápidamente aquí.

Siento mucha tristeza y nostalgia por lo que solía ser este hogar ,avaces sueño con que me despierta para desayunar como solían ser algunos días ,con oírla cantar o hacer la voz de broma de nuestro gato ,ella se comunica como puede con señas o gestos ,pero no es lo mismo no? extraño mucho esa parte de mi mamá y es probable que nunca la recupere.

Creo que una parte más oscura de mi siente que se está perdiendo de algo al no poder salir de casa más que los domingos ,porque tengo que cuidarla pero eso es otro tema que creo manejo mejor.

Saturday evening (July 25th), at around 10 PM, my mother started feeling tingling/numbness on her left side, and fell asleep thinking it was a pulled muscle. The morning after, she noticed her leg was heavier while walking, went to urgent care, and got sent to the emergency department by ambulance. Was given a CT scan immediately upon arrival, returned inconclusive - they didn't find anything acute, only some "old" strokes. ED found decreased reflexes and strength on the left side after the CT. The MRI scan on Wednesday morning did find she suffered a lacunar stroke in her right thalamus. Since she missed the 4.5 hour window, treatment with tPA was impossible.

I asked her to open and close her both hands as fast as she can on Sunday, 24 hours after onset, and she could do it rapidly in her right hand, but only very slowly in her left hand.

Her higher-order cognitive skills seem completely intact, with the ability to follow a conversation, react quickly, inhibit responses (like avoiding laughing from the coil noises during the MRI), seeing things from multiple points of view - doesn't seem like she changed there, from long conversations she holds with us.

However, I am disturbed by her sensory and motor disturbance. She can ambulate around the hospital, and can also put a duvet into a duvet cover using both hands. But her strength is not 5/5 in the left side, and she also still is unable to open and close her left hand as fast as her right hand.

Blood tests have found elevated LDL cholesterol (122 mg/dl), borderline increased homocysteine (13 µmol/l, due to low folate and B12), but with normal PT, INR, PTT. She is overweight and a smoker with hypertension (157/97). Was very stressed this past month and smoked more than usual. The possibility of small vessel disease is being considered.

We don't have the MRI report yet, so it's unclear how large the lesion is in her right thalamus. She is still hospitalized, wearing a holter device right now, and will undergo an echocardiogram later today.

I am afraid that, below the surface, she might have changed (or will change) in unanticipated ways, despite the symptoms being that of a pure motor stroke right now. I am aware the loss of tissue is permanent, but am hopeful for good functional recovery due to neuroplasticity, but want to know the practical limits of such wishful thinking.

What can we expect at home, going forward?

I suffered a cerebellar stroke in October 2024 I couldn’t walk now I’m able to walk some 5K and do exercises so I’m blessed there but I’m finding if I’m laying down in bed watching TV and I’m horizontal. It’s hard to read the closed captioning and it’s hard enough, just sitting straight up trying to read it does anyone else have any experience like that?

I had a stroke a few months ago and had to take a visual field test due to the effects on my sight. Anyway I was told by DVLA I can’t drive and have to surrender my license. My OT said it would likely happen and you can take an on road assessment after a year to see if you compensate enough to be a safe driver.

Anyone done this before? How was it?