STROKE: Remember The 1st Three Letters... S.T.R.

My friend sent this to me and encouraged me to post it and spread the word. I agree. If everyone can remember something this simple, we could save some folks.



STROKE IDENTIFICATION:
During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine and just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes. (they offered to call ambulance)



They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food - while she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening. Ingrid's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00pm , Ingrid passed away.)

She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today.



Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead. It only takes a minute to read this...

STROKE IDENTIFICATION:



A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke...totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE


Remember the "3" steps, STR . Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster.

The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S * Ask the individual to SMILE .

T * = TALK. Ask the person to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently) (eg "It is sunny out today").

R * Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS .


If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call 000 immediately!! and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.



NOTE : Another 'sign' of a stroke is

1. Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue.

2. If the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.



A prominent cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one life will be saved.



….and it could be your own…..


Cheers,

Shorty

I've seen the light, and changed my wicked ways.
www.get.shorty.com.au

My Mother had a stroke a few months after my Father passed in 1998.

Mom lived by herself and went to the store to get something for lunch, that day. I was at work and not living home. For some strange reason something told me to stop by her house on the way home from work at around 3:30 pm and I found her sitting at the table, from what I could tell she was eating lunch and it must of happened. She had a soda in a cup and near her was a half finished sandwhich. She could not talk and her face was beat red and one side was drooping. I called 911 and the hospital did all they could and Mom lived (at least thats what they called it). She was bed bound and could not talk nor move her right side, she needed full care. I moved Mom in with us and we suffered every day along with her, changing her, tube feeding herwatching her die a little bit more each day. It not only took a toll on me but also on my wife and kids. Mom suffered for six years.

What pisses me off is Mom did not have an advanced directive, so I was not allowed to make a choice as for life support or not. A smart ass young punk Dr. would not remove her from LS because he said we dont know how much she can recover. For six years every day, I wanted to find this jerk and show him how much my Mom recovered.

Your friend was very lucky. God was watching out for her.