Hopefully, neither you nor any of your loved ones will experience a stroke. However, this isn’t something that can be guaranteed. So it’s incredibly helpful to be as knowledgeable about them as possible. Being aware of the signs of a stroke can help you and/or a loved one feel more at ease in case of an emergency. And it helps you to act quickly. This is necessary because, with strokes, every second really counts. Read on below to learn more about what the signs of a stroke are and how to respond.
Symptoms
The signs and symptoms of a stroke usually come on very suddenly. A person may have all of these or only some. It generally depends, but you don’t have to be experiencing all of the below symptoms to know you’re having a stroke.
1. Sudden confusion and trouble speaking. Also, there may be difficulty understanding the speech of others. The person may even be unresponsive. Along with these symptoms, a person can be irritated.
2. A sudden and severe headache with no clear cause. This painful headache can sometimes come along with nausea or even vomiting.
3. A metallic taste in the mouth and difficulty swallowing.
4. Trouble seeing out of one or both eyes or blurry vision that comes on suddenly.
5. Sudden numbness, weakness, tingling, and trouble moving. In some cases, even paralysis. This typically occurs just on one side of the body, particularly in the arm, leg, and/or face. A symptom that can also go along with this is dystonia, which involves muscles contracting uncontrollably and involuntary twisting movements.
6. Dizziness, loss of balance and coordination, and/or trouble walking. General weakness and fatigue can also be a sign of a stroke.
Act FAST
Remember to act fast, both quickly and also as in following the helpful FAST acronym.
1. To start, the F stands for face. Check if one side of the face is drooping. If you can’t tell, ask the person to try to smile.
2. The A is for arms. Ask the person to lift both arms and see if one arm drops down or is unsteady. Also, see if there’s numbness in the arm.
3. S is for speech. Which is usually slurred or strange. See if the person you suspect of having a stroke has difficulty speaking. Ask them to repeat something. If they have trouble understanding you or repeat it incredibly slurred, this could be a bad sign.
4. Finally, T is for time. Again, remember that time is not one your side here, so call for help as soon as you suspect something is wrong. The faster someone having a stroke gets help, the better their chances at a good recovery.
Here at Yuma Senior Living, we have 24/7 monitoring and assistance. Residents of assisted living are provided with emergency call pendants. So we can provide help as quickly as possible. We also provide residents with comfortable lodging, healthy meals, and plenty of engaging activities. You can find out more about Yuma Senior Living at www.yumaseniorliving.com.