A stroke can change someone’s life in a flash. A stroke can take someone that was in reasonably good health and able to care for themselves, and change them into someone that struggles walking, someone that might not be able to verbalize their thoughts, and someone that can’t even use the toilet by themselves. Oftentimes, stroke victims can recover and begin to live their lives in a way that closely resembles the way things were pre-stroke.
But not always.
Sometimes a stroke can have a terrible impact on someone for the rest of their life. Doctors have identified key steps that can be taken to help improve outcomes for those that have had a stroke. For example, getting medical attention within two hours of the stroke beginning tends to lead to a much better long term prognosis for the person that has a stroke. Now, researchers are beginning to learn that physical rehabilitation is at its most effective when applied in a certain manner.
The study found that physical rehabilitation is at its most effective 60 to 90 days after the stroke has occurred. Physical therapy that takes place after this is not as effective as it could be if therapy started sooner. If rehab begins sooner than 30 days after the stroke, progress is made, but not as much if it waits to begin within that 60 to 90 day window. This rehab should be intensive in nature in order to provide the best possible results.
Researchers focused on rehab provided to arms and hands, so there’s a chance that other impacted areas might have a different best window of opportunity. More research is needed still to determine this.
After a stroke, the level of care that is needed to get by safely will vary from person to person. If you know someone that has had a stroke, you might not notice any issues with their ability to get around and care for themselves shortly after. But this doesn’t happen with everyone. Some people need a lot of support for extended periods of time. Sometimes, regular movement and cognitive ability never fully comes back. A stroke can be completely devastating for some.
If you have a loved one that has suffered a stroke, you might need help. And that’s okay. There are a lot of good resources out there, and your community probably has a lot, too. Reach out to one of those resources to help get pointed in the right direction.
If you live near San Francisco, we can be a resource for you. Give us a call and feel free to schedule a free consultation. We can help answer your questions, let you know how our service works, then get you steered in the right direction. We know that there are a lot of choices out there and not every service is right for each situation. Our goal is to help connect you with what will work the best for your unique situation so that the people you love will get the best care possible.
Leave a Reply