Stroke Rehab. A Long and Winding Road…
Recently I have penned several blogs [can’t we find a better term to describe someone’s creative output?\} in which I addressed the perpetual nature of Stroke Rehab. To my surprise this theme struck a chord with my readers and has been the source of considerable feedback for me which included a great level of support from respected stroke clinicians. Both local and from overseas.
So, I thought I would revisit this blog, amend it ever so slightly, publish it again so someone who has been touched by stroke may gain some benefit.
So here goes, Thrill Seekers and Fellow Time Travellers.
A Long and Winding Road.....That’s how I would describe my Stroke rehabilitation journey since April 2016, but I can assure you that my arrival at key destinations [rehab goals] along the way has justified the time and effort that I spent on what has now become a daily ritual.
Each destination [rehab goal] is welcomed as it is one more step closer to reclaiming the Pre-Stroke Brian. If that is possible.
As on any journey there have been potholes, inclement weather; foggy patches; annoying animals that cause you to brake suddenly, but off you go again.
Like a journey there are overnight stops.
But again, like a true Stroke Survivor I rise to the dawn of a new day \{a new rehab challenge] and off I go on to the next stage of my rehab odyssey.
We Stroke Survivors are a different crew...We are in for the long haul.
This very journey that I have undertaken sets us \{Stroke Survivors\} apart from other consumers of the skills of physiotherapists and other kindred clinicians.
If I was being treated for a sprained muscle, even a knee replacement, or a dislocated digit my rehab trip is like a quick overnighter [when compared to a Stroke Survivor’s journey\}, then it would be back to normality.
Not so, Fellow Stroke Survivors, our journeys are often perpetual, the deficits that we sustained will be with us until the Grande Buddha taps us on the shoulder.
My Long and Winding Rehab Road Map and Itinerary.
Well, my merry band of comrades, in a recent moment of introspection, I listed down some of my major pit-stops in my rehab journey and calculated the travel time \{rehab days] to reach each destination.
These figures simply reinforce that many of us are indeed travelling along a Long and Winding Road. The start date was 18 April 2016, the date of my Stroke,
My Walking -Twice a Day, Every Day
If you have been following my blogs, you may have come to realize that I walk every day and have been pounding the footpath around Panania/Picnic Point in Sydney and I have calculated that since 2 April 2019 I have walked approximately 19,000 kms
Which means I am currently walking through the streets of San Francisco, on my way back to Sydney from the North Pole.
My Key Messages.
Stroke Survivors -My message is a simple one –Embrace your journey, travel well, safely. Share your journey with someone special. I do. That person is my shadow, the white one- visible only to me.
Stroke Clinicians - Help your Survivor to understand and adopt the concept of the Rehab Journey Concept.
Then plan [with their input] their Rehab Itinerary and Road Map.
Brian A Beh, Stroke Survivor, Advocate, and Investigator.
Lived Experience Stroke Researcher
Life Member of the Hopalong Cassidy Fan Club
Poet, Philosopher and Child of the Cosmos
Winner "Improving Life After Stroke" Category
Stroke Foundation of Australia 2021 National Awards.