What I know: (would rattle about in a thimble), but, here goes. A stroke seems to be any sudden dysfunction within the brain, I think. Cause: Bleeding within the brain, naturally occurring, or from head trauma. Or, disruption of blood flow supplying nutrition to the brain, which sub-categorizes: clog of Carotid Artery or other supply vessel by a clot, or bit of plaque. A mild form called a TIA, Transient Ischemic Attack, may cause loss of awareness for a short time, minutes perhaps, to a longer time, an hour? Studies rate the likelihood of a full-blown stroke following a TIA, based on time duration following the TIA. In other words, right after a TIA, there is higher likelihood than later on. Thus, quick evaluation, if possible, is most important. Stroke may cause any number of symptoms, depending on location affected within the brain, severity, and degree of brain damage. Might be slight paralysis of voluntary muscles somewhere, to paralysis of the breathing apparatus, and thus, death. So far, this is what I can say about it, off the top of my head. Here's the experience: My wife and I were operating a hammer-drill, a hand-held machine which drills a hole while delivering hammer-blows to the drill bit, usually used to make holes in concrete and brick. She stopped suddenly, and stood with a dazed look. I told her to sit down in the shade, which she did, walking to the patio completely normally, no unsteadiness of gait (this is important, I learned later). Presently, she began asking strange questions; what is that machine over there, was I running it, what are we doing. Initially, all I could think of, considering her utter lack of any untoward symptoms, was that she was "pimping" me. Gradually, it dawned on me: possible TIA. I told her we need to go to the ER. She refused. In fifteen or twenty minutes, memory was slowly returning, and she remarked the machine caused it. We made a Dr. appointment, first opening within a few days, her Dr. knew full-well the implications of bouncing about with a hammer-drill. Ordered a CT scan, but was not optimistic of finding evidence of a TIA, turned out, there was none. She still held that she could not rule out a TIA, but little could be done. (I disagreed, but kept quiet. I think blood work to reveal propensity towards clots should have been done). This episode happened last summer. No further recurrence has been noticed. I am worried about it, think about it every day. She, pragmatic as hell, does not. Last Fall, her older sister, in very good health, suffered a serious, debilitating stroke which has left her partially paralyzed on the right side, no use of her hand or arm, but some use of the leg, enough to walk in a very precarious way using a "walker". Runs in the family? Who knows. Have any of you had experience, or known of others' experiences, that you might share here? Thank you. Frank
Frank, my ex had some of those TIA's while we were still together and he acted a lot like what you described with your wife. This was many years ago but we did take him to the hospital and they ran some tests that showed he did have some "mini strokes" ... and with his high blood pressure and heart problems he may have more. He is on some medications to help prevent this..but it is still a possibility even with the meds. Did your wife see a Specialist or just her regular Doctor? It's going to be hard to take this any further if your wife does not feel there is anything to worry about here. But you might try telling her how concerned you are with what happened and because of what her sister has had happen too and that you would like her to look further into this.
There are two types of strokes one is when the arteries or veins burst open causing bleeding. The second is more common is caused by blood clots. One doctor sued the FDA and won to get a health claim that omega 3 fatty acids or ratio of omega 3-6-9 will prevent strokes and heart attacks caused by blood clots. My mother in law has had two strokes and one night she complained of losing feeling on one side of her body not wanting to go to the hospital. I told my wife to take her some omega 3 fatty acids and some nattokinase and take it right now. Next morning she woke up feeling great with no problems and she has been taking omega 3 ever since. Nattokinase is from a Japanese cheese called natto and it dissolves clots better than any drug and it is safe thousands of Japanese eat it every day.
@Babs Hunt Babs, my wife is a hard-headed, rugged individualist, this I would not say if I thought she might ever read this! I firmly believe she may experience further similar distress, with possible dire consequences, but she "poo-poos" my concern. Refuses to seek further medical checking at this time. Now, lately, while shopping, let's say, I find she might respond to a question either late, or in an abstract or distracted way, leading me to think her brain is functioning in an irrational manner, sometimes. But, what am I to do? Frank
@Martin Alonzo Martin, I should like to see data regarding the incidence of stroke in Japan, especially, if possible, among those regularly consuming "natto", as compared to other countries. Frank
Japan has less heart problem and stroke than the US they also live longer. Do a search of nattokinase even webMD takes good about it. For them to say anything possitive about a supplement it must be something special.
Many doctors and lay persons likewise have used natural means , simple, inexpensive and non-toxic, for generations, successfully; always better than toxins. I think this is a good direction to go for plaques also, amyloid and other. @Joy Martin @Joybelle Rowe
A guy on another forum where I'm a member and we were talking about health etc. and he said at 36 he had a stroke, and then admitted he was a smoker and horrible food eater and knows why the stroke. Major wake up call for him. Smoking has no saving graces...
I had a presumed TIA in January of 2020. I got up Sunday morning and was killing time before church when I noticed my left leg was a little weak. This was about 9AM. I didn't think much of it, because I have had one cervical disc replaced and it's common for adjacent ones to act up (even though it had been years since I've had those issues.) I went to church and during the Stand Up/Sit Down stuff I noticed my left leg was still a little weak and my left arm was also feeling the same. Again, I figured it was disc issues. Church was over and I drove to town to do some shopping. when the left side of my face felt numb. THEN I knew what was going on. I went to the hospital (about 1PM) and they took me right in and did tests. Cognitive stuff was OK, CT Scan was clear, but they recommended I stay the night. So I did. The following test were all clear: -Initial CT Scan -Brain MRI -Echo cardiogram -Doppler scan on my arteries --I had paid for a general Community Vascular Screening just 6 months prior and it was clean -I wore a portable heart monitor for a month to check for A-FIB and it was fine. I was referred to a cardiologist (makes no sense for a stroke) and the guy did his own echo cardiogram with an agitated saline solution to test for a hole in my heart...it came back fine. He doubled my Lipitor to 40mg because Lipitor is supposed to prevent your platelets from sticking together. He did see some "vegetative growth" on my aortic valve that "might" have broken off and got in the blood stream, and wanted to take a look in a hospital setting (trans-esophageal ultrasound), but COVID hit. I had issues with this guy bringing me in every 3 months to do an EKG (for a stroke???), to take my blood pressure (it has been low all my life) and for use to look at each other and say "COVID's still here. No procedure for you. See you in 90 days." We had a falling out when his Physicians Assistant took my blood pressure and noticed that my "top number" was a little high. I said "Gee, I can't remember...is that my diastolic or my systolic?" She says "I don't know...it's your top number." *sigh* Then the doctor said "I'm not sure you even had a stroke." I said "Well, if that's the case, cut my Lipitor back down." He said that any damage it might do is inflicted at any dose, and an increased dosage presents little incremental risk. We had the "diagnosis by exclusion" discussion, he offered no other diagnosis, I got tired of having a needless EKG and blood pressure test 4x a year, I told him I could get the most recent COVID status from the news without driving into his office, he said [sarcastically] "Well, I don't want to inconvenience you, how about twice a year?" to which I replied "What medical standard are we applying here?" That was the last time I saw him...COVID simmered down and he could start bringing his higher-risk billable work back into the office, so my presence was no longer needed. That supposed TIA was over 2 1/2 years ago. I've been fine ever since.
A TIA is generally thought to be a precursor to a stroke, since it is basically a temporary stroke, usually with signs and symptoms that are milder, so I can understand the monitoring. I can also appreciate that it can be annoying. Basing medication on blood pressure readings can also be misleading because, while some people have blood pressures that are usually about the same, others (like myself) get vastly differing blood pressures from one moment to the next, so a single reading can be meaningless. The first BP check when I go into the doctor's office is usually high, If they wait five or ten minutes, a second reading will be much lower. So, to satisfy my doctor, I ask for a recheck, and I have also submitted blood pressure readings throughout the day since I can do that at home, as can anyone, given that auto BP cuffs are fairly inexpensive.
My blood pressure has been so low that when I went in to get a colonoscopy, even in that high-stress situation they would not "put me under" until it came up to a minimum level. I had to sit there and think stressful thoughts. I'm not sure anyone ever told me this. I do not have any of the risk factors other than age: -BP is OK -Cholesterol has been under control with meds --I assume it's OK because my arteries were deemed to be "clear" with 2 different scans 6 months apart ---They gave me a ribbon but no plaque -I don't smoke -No A-FIB The cardiologist said "May have been a neurological event," but no one recommended I see a neurologist and I did not press the issue.
A transient ischemic attack (TIA) can be thought of as a mini-stroke. It is caused by a temporary blockage or decreased blood flow to the brain. It differs from an ischemic stroke in that it is temporary and is not associated with brain cell death. Another type of stroke is a hemorrhagic stroke, which occurs when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures and causes bleeding. This, in turn, compresses the brain tissue, damaging or killing brain cells. Ischemic strokes account for nearly 90% of strokes. An ischemic stroke is to the brain what a myocardial infarction (heart attack) is to the heart, and a transient ischemic attack is to the brain what angina is to the heart. A TIA can be considered a warning sign or a milder form of a stroke, whichever makes you feel better, but it doesn't necessarily imply that you are going to go on to suffer an ischemic stroke, particularly if you take steps to avoid it. I personally believe that diet is a better way to do that than medications, but medications are prescribed because patients are more likely to take them than they are to maintain a healthy diet. I wouldn't panic, but a TIA isn't something to be ignored, either. Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV.
Yeh, I hesitate to call myself out here in public. When I was first diagnosed with high cholesterol I was young & ideal and went meatless for 6 months. I immediately pounded my numbers waaayyyy down, but could not maintain that diet for the rest of my life. I consciously caved to "Better living through chemistry." And then there's the "Is cholesterol really a health problem?" debate. I always eat healthy food (cereal and fruit & fresh veggies and a non-iceberg salad every day), but not everything I eat is healthy. But as I said, none of the tests showed any causal issue...even though I take statins, I have no detectable plaque. I've not been prescribed anything for the stroke, just the increased statin dosage. I remember reading about the red flag for future risk, but there's nothing to treat. I don't specifically recall being tested for abnormal clotting issues (it would have been part of a general panel and not a physical test), but I gotta think that it was done somewhere along the line as a check-the-box thing.