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Aftermath of a Stroke - What to Expect

A stroke is a serious medical condition. When you or someone you love has suffered a stroke you may not be prepared for what you will find when you see them. Learn what to expect after a stroke has occurred.

A stroke is caused by a blockage of a blood vessel in the brain. Lack of blood flow to portions of the brain mean a lack of life-sustaining oxygen to the tissue. The result is brain death and with it, a change in the way that you act and what you can control within your own body.

A stroke can affect the right or the left side of your body. What most people are not aware of is that each side of the brain controls the opposite side of the body. So, a stroke on the right side of the brain will affect the left side of the body and vice versa.

How severe the effects of a stroke can be is determined by how quickly intervention occurs. The sooner you get proper medical help the more likely the effects are to be reversible over time. The longer the brain goes without oxygen the greater the area of the brain will die.

With a stroke there will be some paralysis. The paralysis affects the face, arm and leg. A person with facial paralysis may drool and will have trouble speaking clearly. Walking will be difficult because you will have to support the weight of the other side of the body as well. Rehabilitation will be necessary.

Left side stroke

This stroke occurs on the left side of the brain and will affect the right side of the body. Besides paralysis, the person will have trouble with their speech and language. This is called aphasia. Their parietal lobe has been affected by the stroke. They may forget how to speak.

There are other neurological changes that occur. Behavior is slower and they are more cautious even if they weren’t that way before the stroke. Vision loss can occur as well, in the right eye. The muscle strength is weakened on the right side.

Right side stroke

The left side of the body is affected. There is paralysis and that tell-tale mouth drooping called dysarthria. Behavior becomes erratic and quick even if they were not that way before the stroke. There could be blindness in the left eye.

People with right side strokes may experience changes as a result of the occipital lobe being affected. Their spatial recognition and perception will have deficits because of the stroke.

It can be disconcerting for you to see a loved after a stroke have occurred. How permanent these effects are depends on the speed of intervention. It may take a few weeks to a few months or more to see signs of recovery, but they will come.

SBI!