Changes in your emotions and to your personality are common after stroke. It's very normal to experience strong emotions after stroke, however these emotional reactions usually get better with time. Longer-term emotional and
Another personality change that occurs after stroke is impulsiveness. This is characterized as the inability to think ahead or understand consequences. Impulsiveness is more commonly seen in people with right-side or a frontal lobe stroke.
Stroke impacts the brain, and the brain controls our behavior and emotions. You or your loved one may experience feelings of irritability, forgetfulness, carelessness or confusion. Feelings of anger, anxiety or depression are also common.
As you begin to recover, you might feel that your behaviour changes or improves. You may start feeling better physically and emotionally. But some changes will be long term. You are still the same person, but a stroke may change the way you respond to things.
By 1 year, 40.3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 37.3%–43.5%) of stroke patients had died, 51.9% (95% CI 48.7%–55.1%) by 2 years, and 72.8% (95% CI 69.4%–76.1%) by 5 years (figure 1A). Median survival was 1.8 years (95% CI 1.6–2.1 years) after stroke.
Gains can happen quickly or over time.
The most rapid recovery usually occurs during the first three to four months after a stroke, but some survivors continue to recover well into the first and second year after their stroke.
Even after surviving a stroke, you're not out of the woods, since having one makes it a lot more likely that you'll have another. In fact, of the 795,000 Americans who will have a first stroke this year, 23 percent will suffer a second stroke.
Common post-stroke physical problems include: Weakness, paralysis, and trouble with balance or coordination. Pain, numbness, or burning and tingling feelings. Fatigue, which may continue after you return home.
Strokes that block a brain artery usually cause a range of symptoms that may include vascular dementia. But some strokes don't cause any noticeable symptoms. These silent strokes still increase dementia risk.
Stroke patients may show aggressive behaviors including hitting or hurting others, kicking, biting, grabbing, pushing, throwing objects, etc. Their verbal behavior also includes cursing, screaming, making noises, hostile muttering, etc. This overt aggression is observed usually during the acute stage in patients.
A stroke can damage parts of the brain that are linked to the emotions, leading to problems with controlling emotions. Some people have difficulty controlling their mood, and seem angry or irritable, which can put a strain on relationships. Some people find that they become more sexual, or lose inhibitions.
After a stroke, you may have difficulty speaking. It may also be difficult to understand others when they speak or gesture to you. Reading and writing may be difficult. Your speech pathologist will work with you to develop a rehabilitation program.
As many as two-thirds of stroke patients experience cognitive impairment or cognitive decline following a stroke; approximately one-third go on to develop dementia. The risk for cognitive impairment or decline is increased by a history of stroke.
For this reason, the 60 minutes after the onset of stroke symptoms are known as “the golden hour.” If treatment can be initiated within this brief window, the patient's outcome is likely to be better.
Some people will experience symptoms such as headache, numbness or tingling several days before they have a serious stroke. One study found that 43% of stroke patients experienced mini-stroke symptoms up to a week before they had a major stroke.
Stress can cause the heart to work harder, increase blood pressure, and increase sugar and fat levels in the blood. These things, in turn, can increase the risk of clots forming and travelling to the heart or brain, causing a heart attack or stroke.
Driving after a stroke
Whether you can return to driving depends on what long-term disabilities you may have and the type of vehicle you drive. It's often not physical problems that can make driving dangerous, but problems with concentration, vision, reaction time and awareness that can develop after a stroke.
It can be caused by a narrowed blood vessel, bleeding, or a clot that blocks blood flow.
After six months, improvements are possible but will be much slower. Most stroke patients reach a relatively steady state at this point. For some, this means a full recovery. Others will have ongoing impairments, also called chronic stroke disease.
Recovery time after a stroke is different for everyone—it can take weeks, months, or even years. Some people recover fully, but others have long-term or lifelong disabilities.
Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is a prevalent symptom among stroke survivors. This symptom is an independent risk factor for stroke and may reduce stroke survivors' quality of life, cognitive functioning, and daytime functional performance.