Understanding Stroke Recovery
Stroke recovery happens as soon as
the disease process is under control. The brain starts to slowly respond to the
damage done to it and will alter or change its way of functioning to
accommodate for the loss or death of parts.
Caregivers and patients need to
understand that stroke recovery is slow and unpredictable. How the brain
repairs itself is still largely a mystery. This is what makes each stroke survivor’s
prognosis different. Doctors, nurses, and therapists can only guess at how a
patient will respond according to the location and severity of stroke. It is
the support of the survivor’s family, friends, and self that can make all the
difference in recovery.
Recovery from stroke happens in a
“two steps forward, one step back” process. There may be days of remarkable
recovery for the stroke patient, and then there may be days of great loss. It
is during this time that caregivers, friends, and family must find joy in the
smallest of gains in your loved one.
The
Family’s Role in Recovery
The family gives us a sense of
belonging, completeness, and purpose in life. Family members suffering from
stroke need more than ever to be connected to family. Stroke survivors may not
be able to immediately resume their previous roles, but still need to be
included. In our attempts not to leave them out, there are times when we as
African-Americans swing too far the other way. We may give too much family
control to stroke survivors, not thinking of their limitations. This is
painfully true when the stroke survivor is the leader or elder of the family.
When grandparents or parents are
involved, adult children may allow the stroke survivor to dictate their wants,
versus what everyone knows is best for them. In many cases, the thought of
confrontation with a grandparent or parent is unwanted. The respect shown to
African-American family elders is absolute. You do not argue or disagree with
what they want, say, or do. This is how many people in the culture are raised.
This type of upbringing can lead to issues of respect versus disrespect when it
comes to important things like safety.
Home
Adjustment
In trying to adjust to the needs of
the stroke survivor, changes in family and home may occur. Family members may
have to decide for the survivor where he or she should live throughout their
recovery.
This is not an easy decision as it affects not only the survivor, but
also the household of the family member the survivor goes to live with. Family
interactions, functions, and routines will change in response to the survivor
being there. There will be more demands on the household emotionally,
physically, and economically. These demands will directly affect everyone in
that household in some positive and negative ways.
The family’s ability to live
day-to-day, week-to-week, and month-to-month with the recovery process will be
the overall factor in how an African-American family recovers from stroke. In
having the stroke survivor re-enter the family, the previous roles each member
of the family had will change. The stroke survivor may not be able to carry out
the roles he or she once had. It is up to the family to rearrange or
redistribute these roles to help the family function properly.
Care must also be taken to keep the
stroke survivor involved in the family’s life. This means allowing the stroke
survivor to take responsibility for the roles he or she can do. If Mom is not
capable of cooking, but wants to help in raising the children, let her. If Dad
can’t drive, but can do yard work, let him. These roles will allow the stroke
survivor to feel like he or she is a useful and wanted part of the family, not
a burden on others.
Keeping
routines
All families have a rhythm to them
that is as individual as the people that make up the family. When a stroke
affects one of the family members, the rhythm of the family is disrupted. In
trying to find the rhythm again, families tend to fall back on the normal
routines they once had. It is important to keep these routines even after the
stroke survivor returns home.
The everyday rhythm of family will
allow the stroke survivor to feel safe and comfortable while adjusting to the
physical and emotional changes they are experiencing. The routines also allow the
family to cope with the changes in their loved one. In keeping the family
rhythm going, promises made by the family should be kept. This includes the
member of the family that had the stroke. If the family promised to be at
Auntie’s birthday party, then the entire family should go. If the family goes
to church every Sunday, then the entire family should continue to go. The
promises that are important to the family should remain important.
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