Stroke Recovery Time

Stroke is the third largest cause of death and long term disability in the United States of America. The most important step after stroke is to be able to stand on your feet. Stroke recovery rehabilitation has an important agenda. It is relearning the skills that were lost due to the damage caused to the brain. Read about stroke recovery time and stroke recovery rehabilitation further.

Stroke Recovery Time

There are two types of strokes. They are ischemic and hemorrhagic. The question now is what happens during a stroke. In an ischemic stroke, blood supply to the brain is either reduced or cut off. It can be due to a blood clot or due to narrowing of the arteries. If a person suffers from hemorrhagic stroke,it means a blood vessel has burst in the brain, which has led to rush of blood to flood a particular area of the brain. Now comes the question, 'is brain stroke recovery possible?' Well be happy, it is possible to recover from a brain stroke. Human body is a scientific wonder, even if the blood supply is cut off, new pathways are created and other area of the brain takes over the functions of the damaged area.

Brain stroke recovery time is dependent on the severity of the stroke and the complications arising out of it. The rehabilitation process normally starts within two days of the stroke, if the patient is stable after the stroke. There is no average stroke recovery time which can be stated, as there are some patients who recover from a stroke in the first few days of it. In some cases, mild stroke recovery time can be even more than six months. The first few months after a stroke are the most crucial months. It is when the recovery is the fastest and the best. However, then the process may hit a plateau and the recovery process slows down although, small gains in terms of recovery are made over a period of next couple of years.

In some patients, it is seen that drugs taken for conditions associated with stroke, may slower the recovery time. The drugs, which commonly pamper the rehabilitation process are high blood pressure drugs, anti-convulsion drugs, anti-psychotic drugs and also antianxiety drugs.

Stroke Recovery Rehabilitation

The rehabilitation process aims to make the patient independent and productive at the earliest. When we speak of stroke recovery rehabilitation, there are a few factors, which play an important role in the same. They are:

• The first most important factor is the amount of damage caused to the brain. It is natural that more the damage, more will be the stroke recovery time and less the damage, less will be the stroke recovery time.
• The skills of the team handling rehabilitation also comes into the picture here. If the team is an experienced team, it will find it relatively easy to find the peculiar traits of the patients and accordingly, the recovery process will be hastened.
• If the patient who has suffered from a stroke has very supportive family and friends, the stroke recovery time will be less.
• Last but the most important is when was the rehabilitation started. The stroke recovery time will be shorter, if the rehabilitation process is started early as the patient will regain the lost abilities and skills early.

Strong motivation and goal of independence are the two main points, which will help in the rehabilitation process. Very often it is observed that people can go into depression, as a direct or an indirect effect of a stroke, which in turn can have a negative impact on the rehabilitation process. The progress and recovery for each person is unique. More often than not, most of the functional abilities are restored after a stroke. Remember that the recovery is an ongoing process and hence, takes time.

After a stroke, do not be bothered about the stroke recovery time. Your aim should be to work diligently towards recovery with the help of your stroke rehabilitation team. It is important, that you are true to yourself and give it your best. At the same time, it is advisable to quit any unhealthy habits that you have. Also, exercise and healthy diet will be very beneficial in the recovery process.