Is it possible to receive assistance in addressing the effects of emotion on spasticity?

Hello Garry,

Thank you for reaching out on EnableMe.  It sounds like you have been working hard on your rehabilitation and making some big gains. I am so sorry to hear of your father in law's passing and hope you are doing as well as possible, this must be a very difficult and sad time for you.

Hopefully others in the EnableMe community will understand and have experienced something similar to what you are going through and add their comments to your post.

Muscle spasticity can be quite common after a stroke and occurs if the part of your brain that sends and receives these messages is injured by a stroke. Muscle spasticity can make your muscles feel stiff and tight and difficult to move as you have been experiencing. It can be difficult to move your arms or legs as you’d like to with muscle spasticity.

Are you still receiving therapy now? Physiotherapy and Occupational therapy can certainly help manage the impacts of muscle spasticity by helping to stretch and lengthen the tight muscles. They can also talk with you about other treatment options that may also help. Your Dr can also discuss the use of medications that may help manage the spasticity. Everyone is different but your GP or rehabilitation physician can discuss your best options with you.

Mood changes and changes in emotions can have quite an effect on you after a stroke. These can include exacerbating other impacts such as mobility, motivation and muscle spasticity as well.  Mood changes after stroke are very common and can affect everyone in different ways. These can include feeling depressed, having a lowered mood, feeling more anxious that usual, and not feeling motivated to keep up your day-to-day activities or therapy. There are strategies that can help better manage any mood changes or emotional changes after stroke.

Mood changes can also be associated with post stroke fatigue. Fatigue after stroke can also affect issues such as muscle spasticity and mobility. Have you ever discussed or looked into fatigue post your stroke, as this may also account for your inability to walk, and your uncontrollable weeping at your father in law’s funeral. There is a lot of information on fatigue after stroke on our EnableMe website, you might like to have a look at it here. Given that the last few weeks have been very taxing and sad for you, you may be experiencing other impacts apart from the emotional changes and muscle spasticity.

A funeral can be a very sad and emotional time, so your crying may have been a very normal response. However, you may also be experiencing emotional lability, where you have emotional responses that may seem out of proportion. These emotional responses can be crying or laughing uncontrollably or excessively, even though the situation may not warrant this reaction. This effect of stroke can be very challenging, and it can be helpful to be aware of anything that triggers emotional lability. This will be different for everyone. Things to look out for include tiredness, stress, anxiety and noisy, overcrowded environments. Being around emotional people, situations or events can also trigger lability, as well as being put under pressure. All of which would have been relevant to what was happening for you at your father in law’s funeral.

With everything that you have experienced, have you sought any support for yourself? Emotional lability, changes in your emotions and even post stroke fatigue can benefit from input from a psychologist to help manage those feelings. Make sure you speak with your GP. They can talk with you about a Mental Health Care Plan that can help you access Medicare subsidised psychology sessions.  Your GP should also be able to recommend someone locally to help as well.

There certainly sounds like there is a lot going on for you Garry. You are very welcome to reach out to us here on StrokeLine. We would be happy to talk with you in more detail about all you are experiencing at the moment. You can call StrokeLine on ph. 1800 787 653, or send us an email at strokeline@strokefoundation.org.au.  We are open Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm AEDT.

Warm regards

Siobhan (StrokeLine)

Thank you Siobhan for your prompt and detailed reply.

Yes I am still receiving therapy. I do 2 O/T sessions a week, 1 physio session a week and a hydro session per week as well as a set of exercises set out by my physio and a 1k walk on the days I am not receiving therapy.

Seeing a psychologist to help manage these feelings is what I had in mind too. I live in country WA and all attempts to initiate this so far have hit dead ends. I even contacted a psychologist by email who was recommended to me and was told they could not help "speak to your O/T".

If the Stroke Foundation could put me in touch with an appropriately trained Neuro experienced psychologist, I would be extremely grateful. I am prepared to make the 2.5-hour trip to Perth if necessary or a Telehealth appointment would work for me if possible.

Thank you.

Regards

Garry 

Thanks for replying Garry. Glad to hear you are still involved with therapy. We cannot give specific recommendations as finding a psychologist is a very personal choice. You need to find someone that you feel you can open up to and feel confident with.  We can email you with some advice and options that might be of some help.

You can find a psychologist by asking your GP if they have any recommendations in the local area. The GP will often have had feedback about other health providers that can give you more specific recommendations rather than a web search.

You can also search the Australian Psychological Society here by using the search criteria of acquired brain injury under Trauma and harm, or life transition and adjustment issues under personal. There will be options depending on where you live Garry.

Perhaps email StrokeLine on strokeline@strokefoundation.org.au or give us a call on Ph 1800 787 653 and we can provide you with more specific information.

I hope this is of some help and hopefully we will talk with you more soon.

Kind regards

Siobhan (StrokeLine)