The brain is an amazing organ. It has been said that we only use 25% of our brain capacity. Considering the damage three strokes did to my brain and the dire prognosis I received, I tend to believe it’s true to some extent.
I have recovered enough to walk, talk, drive, and swim, but getting here was no easy task. However, it’s certainly much better than any other choice I was presented with.
I believe my success in recovering from the ravages of the strokes started with exercising my brain, perhaps a little abstract in terms of typical exercise, but your brain learns by activity, thinking, reading, puzzles, games and any activity that stimulates thought processes.
More often than not when visiting other stroke survivors, I find them in their rooms or in a common area watching television. I was born into the first TV generation and have been a fan of most programming, but when I was in a nursing home facility, it became apparent that after physical therapy my body was tired, but my mind was still available for exercise.
The first thing I did was study the way people around me walked. Like most people, I did a lot things unconsciously. Just walking, talking, and just standing takes a conscious effort after a stroke. So I studied the ways people moved around me. I learned a lot about standing balance by watching my one-year-old grandson take his first steps.
When I was in my room I would read puzzle books or play game on a smart phone or a laptop computer, the TV was always on but I rarely watched it, I would try to multi-task – always keeping my mind active and challenged.
The largest obstacle stroke survivors face is realizing how much you have to relearn, it is like being an infant all over again, except most babies aren’t working with a damaged brain, so the learning is much slower. But practice, practice, and more practice is the only path that works for me.
It’s hard to describe the effects a major stroke has had on normal functions, in my case I started with almost no functions and had to relearn everything.
As I look back to my hospital and nursing home stays, I am amazed at my recovery. Stepping out of the grip of depression was the hardest part, I had to reconcile the stroke and the resulting damage before I could move on.
I still move slow as compared to normal folks but my walking and talking continue to improve in all areas.
I recently saw a PBS show on the brain and it made a point of stating that the key to brain health and or recovery is challenging activity, as it builds connections stimulates brain cell growth.
REFUSE TO BE HELPLESS