I am working through all of your questions I receive on social media and will continue to answer you all privately, as well as posting on the blog - fellow survivors may be having the same questions! I wanted to say THANK YOU for asking, please continue to and we can recover and live again together!
Question 1: Hello… I am just wondering if you would know of stroke survivors regaining back full control of their limbs post stroke? Whereby the range and strength of the affected side is similar with the unaffected?
Here you go, K.L.! The short answer is YES!
A: FLINT REHAB, experts in stroke recovery, says…
There’s a myth in the stroke recovery world that says after two years, you are as good as you are going to get.
This is incredibly limiting, not to mention false.
Your brain is changing all throughout your life, and it certainly does not stop after a stroke.
Survivors with paralysis tend to be on the receiving end of these limiting beliefs more than others, because it takes much longer to see results.
And for that reason, this week’s newsletter is dedicated to anyone recovering from post-stroke paralysis.
We hope these guides help you understand how to take back control of your recovery.
No matter how many years it has been.
For more information from Flint Rehab, click here.
B: ATTITUDE: Words of Wisdom from Dr. Elyse Newland, Occupational Therapist and Certified Stroke Rehab Specialist:
"Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results." – Willie Nelson, American singer/songwriter.
Let me preface this by saying it's not always easy to keep a positive attitude. Life is a rollercoaster with lots of ups and downs. It's okay to give yourself permission to feel down sometimes. And if you seem to be stuck in that negative or depressed mood, reach out to your doctor or counselor.
But science shows us that a positive attitude is better for our health than living in negativity.
From an article from Hopkins Medicine, "People with a family history of heart disease who also had a positive outlook were one-third less likely to have a heart attack or other cardiovascular event within five to 25 years than those with a more negative outlook."
So what are some practical ways we can stay positive?
Smile more. An article from 2012 found that smiling (even fake smiling) helped to reduce stress levels.
Practice thankfulness. Practicing gratitude can help you focus on the good things you have going on in your life.
Reframe. When you're in a stressful or negative situation, think about how you can turn your thought process around. Are there positive aspects about the situation? Can you focus on those instead?
Take care, Elyse
Question 2: What kind of diet do you follow lately? Do you eat a lot of carbs? (A.C.)
Here you go, A!
My food program varies, depending on the amount of traveling we do. However, I’ll leave it to the experts to outline the best foods for survivors, as well as the general public are listed in this article: Power Foods for Your Brain.
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