Save a Friend, Family Member or Stranger From a Stroke! Now a fourth indicator, the tongue.
During a barbeque, a woman stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics)... she said she had just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.
They cleaned her up and brought her a new plate of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Jane went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.
Jane’s husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital and at 6:00 PM Jane passed away. She had suffered a stroke at the barbeque. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Jane would be with her friends and family today.
Some stroke victims do not die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.
Most neurologists believe that if can a stroke victim is assessed within 3 hours then can often totally reverse the effects of a stroke
The solution is to quickly recognize the signs of a stroke, and have the person diagnosed, and medically cared for within 3 hours. This can be difficult to accomplish but well worth attempting. In a worst/best case scenario, the helper may be overreacting and the person is fine.
RECOGNIZING A STROKE
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. Or simply to “show their teeth”
T* Ask the person to TALK…REPEAT A SIMPLE SENTENCE (“The sky is blue today”)
R* Ask the person to close his/her eyes and RAISE BOTH ARMS.
** NOW a NEW Sign to try ** Stick out Your Tongue!
Ask the person to stick out his tongue. If the tongue is ‘Crooked’, if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.
If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call 911 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.
Note: We have had a few situations where our caregivers have noted a sudden balance difficulty in their clients. They then checked for the above signs. When their clients demonstrated one or two of the these signs, they called 911. In all cases, the person ended up being fine. We always prefer speedy assessment and calling 911, even when it results in a good outcome. One of our long-term clients was sent to the ER several years ago since her caregiver noted 2 of the above signs. The client, once assessed, just needed a medication adjustment. She died last month, at 102, of natural causes. ■