EnableMe | enableme - stroke recovery and support

Hey all,

My hubby had a stroke two weeks ago, unfortunately due to the symptoms presenting similar to vertigo they missed it until a week later. The MRI says Ischaemic infarct in left cerebellum due to left posterior cerebellar artery occlusion

Moderate chronic vessel ischaemic disease

Confirmation of infarction involving left PiCA territory

High T2 Flair signal involving the bilateral superatentorial white matter and peri ventricular regions reflective of moderate chronic vessel ischaemic disease.

I realise that as we age white matter is something often picked up on brain scans but l don’t understand his continued risk for another stroke and it’s frustrating no one discuses this with you. Atm preventative measures are around blood pressure meds, blood thinners, meds to lower heart rate and dietary changes.

Cognition seems ok but some executive functioning issues ie planning decision making. Mostly balance issues and ongoing dizziness but overall the stroke seems to have affected him mildly.

Any advice?

I should add he is very fati

Hi, My stroke was a cerebellum ischaemic stroke initially diagnosed as vertigo. It affected my balance. At that stage I was 66 and did balance exercises for an hour per day, every day for a year and neuroplastity developed and my balance is now normal. However I did not have fatigue.

I don’t know if it possible to do this amount of exercise considering you husband's fatigue.

Good luck,

Ian

Thanks Ian appreciate your response and thanks for sharing your story. I’m so glad things are much better for you now. Hubby is going to see a Physio in a few weeks so hopefully they come up with some exercises to help with balance. I’ll certainly do what l can to encourage exercise when he’s up to it.

Hello Webstar,

We are sorry to hear about your husband’s recent stroke, his impacts and your experience with the hospital or health professionals.

Fortunately, it does sound like things are in place for secondary prevention of stroke. You may like to read more about stroke prevention here.

If you are at all concerned about your husband’s risk factors or changes in the impacts post-stroke, please do not hesitate to discuss this further with his treating team or his GP. We may also be able to provide secondary prevention education over the phone on 1800 787 653.

You can also discuss your concerns with a neurologist/ stroke specialist. The neurologist can discuss optimisation of his secondary prevention strategies and look further into his cognitive changes.

Depending on the review, your husband may be referred on to an occupational therapist (OT) for guidance and practical strategies to help with his executive functioning issues. Or he may be referred to Neuropsychology for further assessment and intervention, if deemed necessary.

Fatigue is very common after stroke but can vary in intensity and duration. It is important to balance activity and rest levels and understand that it is normal for it to take time to return to previous energy levels post stroke. An OT can also assist with energy conservationmanagementtechniques that may be helpful to combatfatigue.

If you would like any more information or support, please do not hesitate to contact us on StrokeLine at 1800 787 653 or email us at strokeline@strokefoundation.org.au. We are available Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm AEST.

Kind regards,

StrokeLine team

Thank you so much for your reply. I really appreciate your practical advice and will follow up on those suggestions :)

Hubby had a stroke 2 weeks ago…..

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