Hi, never had a migraine before my stroke (January)... during the extremely hot weather in summer i got terrible migraines... And since Friday last week been suffering with awful head cold, worst ever...stiff neck , sneezing, runny nose and awful fatigue and yes the migraines came...been constant over weekend. Someone told me that when u have a stroke u are more sensitive to the heat and the cold. Does this mean getting a common cold means going through this each time? Feel shocking!
Ah, sunshine, I think most of us are suffering these symptoms just now so don’t think it is specifically linked with Stroke. However, I have noticed my husband does react to the weather, especially the cold. I believe people on blood thinners do react to cold more easily. Perhaps SS on here will give an inside view. Hope your migraine eases off. Take care, V&J ?
Oooh, sounds grim. I think SS take longer to shake off ailments, just another legacy of this cruel condition.
Dose up, take plenty of fluids, and demand TLC xx
hi, doesn't apply to me re ambient temperatures but my mouth is very much more sensitive to temperatures, i can't eat food or drink coffee as hot as i used to, same for cold stuff like ice cream.
Dear Sunshine
We are all different but share many common issues. We are very likely to get all sorts of medical problems. I recommend dealing with them one at a time.
I am not sensitive to hot and cold, if anything I am better than before stroke. Also, I got numerous migraines before stroke, but very few after stroke. There are a few plus points if we look hard enough.
Knowing how much time and energy goes in to a regular cold and knowing how much energy we need to effect our recoveries, I go to extremes to avoid a cold. Vitamin C, always dressing warm, even if its the dash to the dustbin, but biggest thing of all, stay away from others with a cold.
All this horrible stuff does ease. It gets better, but so slowly that it is hard to appreciate.
Coming up for your one year mark soon (?) Try and look back at the state you were in 12 months back and I am sure you will see the improvements.
Bless you
Colin
You are so right about looking back to see how far you have come. I had a stroke in February and initially I was not capable of making any decisions, I could barely think, my brain felt like cotton wool. It’s only recently that I feel I can make decisions and that my thought processors are coming back to how they used to be. If I get over tired or have too many things to think about at once it can all go wrong and I get in a right muddle but in general I feel I’m recovering fairly well. I know I’ll never be how I was before the stroke but I am getting used to that.
The biggest problem I seem to have is SF which I started to get a while back and hits me when I’m not expecting it. Today after lunch we went to Hexham which you reach via a bit of a hill from the car park. We’d only gone a few yards when the SF hit and I could barely walk, think the SF was due to the fact I’d not long had lunch but I felt absolutely drained and had awful heavy legs. I felt terrible for a while and it really affected the rest of the day.
Back to the doctors tomorrow so will mention the SF to him.
Glad to see your feeling a bit better Colin.
Ann.
Dear Ann
What a good explanation of some of the feelings that are endured in the first year. I can not relate to the first year any more, it his been dispatched to the depths of my memory.
It does seem that SF is the big problem. Very often the "answer" is to slow down and rest.
For the first 9 months the SF would descend frequently, I then was forced to rest or I would fall down. A proper rest for about 45 minutes would put me back on track. At nine months the SF cleared. The fog lifted. I connected with the world clearly. Wow what I had been dealing with for 9 months ! Then Elation. Extreme happiness, relief. Unimagineable satisfaction .
Regret to say it was just two days. Then a new SF descended. Less severe, but the fog and disconnection came back in a lower key. If I restricted activity to 45 minutes, then rested for 30 minutes then I can get through a day. If I push through the 45 minutes then extreme fatigue lays me out.
My night time sleep is important. If I get the right amount (7.5 hours for me) then I am at my best. But slip on night time sleep and the SF escalates a lot.
Good description "cotton wool". I am fighting my way out the fog and cotton wool just to get through a modest day. I know I used to be quick thinking and quite bright. Now I am slow and I am very dull.
Only another SS understands this. The rest of the world just rushes around me. Never stopping to visit my dull and slow self. New friends are better, they are inclined to accept me for who I am. Best of all is my cat who adopted me 15 months ago. He accepts me fully. He doesnt mind the stroke bits. He has his own agenda for strokes, as in cuddles/petting.
So where do the likes of you and me go now ? I am hopeful for you as two years seems to be the marker for continued improvement, then its very slow changes. But its never too late. We get somewhere.
Best wishes
Colin
Yes think you are right. Everytime i get a headache or anything in fact...i think oh oh....
Absolutely 
Yes totally agree with you thanks. Yes, coming up to 1 year anniversary next month, and luckily one stroke. Hopefully 2019 will be lucky year for all.
Hi I too suffer from temperature change especially the cold. Sometimes I am sat here with socks tucked in my PJs, a blanket, hot water bottle, with the heating on and I am still cold!! As for the migraines I used to suffer before my stroke but touch wood I have hardly had a headache or migraine since. I do catch every cold going from the little ones at school, and sinnusitus is a pain for me together with the fatigue. So I suppose the stroke effects us all differently.
I would recommend you go to youre doctor if the headache persists and get it checked out, he might be able to give you something for it. Good luck
I’ve been to town today Christmas shopping which was pretty busy and now am pretty tired. I’ve got really loud noise in my ear which I think is a feature of SF so I’m taking things easy this afternoon. I seem to be doing that more often these days but I guess I need to listen to my brain.
I hope it settles before night time otherwise I’ll have it all night as well which is really hard to deal with. I’m still waiting for my appointment with the hearing department to get a hearing aid to mask the sound. They mustn’t be subject to waiting time initiatives which I think is currently 6 weeks.
As for where do the likes of us go now, I’m hopefully going to learn how to manage this awful SF and emotions which are a real nuisance. I hope you’ll continue to share your words of wisdom with us all, we need them.
Best wishes
Ann
Hello Ann, fancy going to The Toon before Christmas. If you’re with Sunderland ENT and waiting for an appointment I’m not surprised. I’ve been waiting a long time, too. However, I’m in Durham so I’m going to ask for their specialist. It’ll be after Christmas now though, as we’re away from Monday next week. Hope you get sorted quickly. V&J
Hello Veronica, we were a bit late going because I was at the doctors as well so it was really hard to get parked. We ended up at St James park. The toon was heaving lol.
I am waiting for an appointment at Sunderland, I had the initial consultation on 17th July with the doctor and am still waiting for the appointment to have a hearing aid. I think they would prefer you to go privately which is so wrong whether you can afford it or not. I think their waiting time was 7 - 8 months which is terrible really
Have a lovely holiday, it will be warmer than it is here thats for sure.
Ann.
Thank you Ann. We’re really looking forward to it. I’m sipping honey and lemon and swallowing paracetamol trying to stave off a sore throat and head cold. John is the same.?? What a hike from the car park! I opt for Metro Centre nowadays. Even there it is a nightmare if John is with me. You need to keep your elbows well sharpened. ?? I finally persuaded him to take a rambler stick so people can see he is to be avoided (whack). ? it worked beautifully in Cordoba.
Sunderland used to have an excellent ENT so I opted for there for an op. I had all follow up appointments at Dryburn then we were shipped out elsewhere. Now Dryburn aren’t allowed to to look after my aids if I get my new ones from Sunderland. So petty! I had a test on 30th August and now waiting to hear from Sunderland to supply new ones. The consultant didn’t have my records so couldn’t tell whether my hearing had changed! When I get back from holiday I have to ask my GP to re refer me to Durham. Tsk!
Anyway, hope you’re snuggled in out of the cold. Take care, V&J
Dear Ann
If I went shopping in our town (Colchester) I would be utterly exhausted. I wait until its a quiet time then plan exactly which shops to visit before getting the bus home. For whatever reason, travel is bad news for me.
I get tinnitus. It can drive one quite mad. Mine is at its peak at night so I often sleep sitting up. Or watching TV which I guess masks the noise. My friend with worse tinnitus has some noise cancelling headphones. They are quite extraordinary. And very expensive. She was injured when a tram crashed, so the operators provided things like flash headphones.
I find that the emotionality cures itself over time. At first I had counselling but in the past 30 months the emotionality has gotten better and better.
I cant really manage the SF. I basically get 3 hours a day when I can operate. And thats in 4 sessions of 45 minutes. I work very hard at sleeping the right amount, which is being spectacularly unsuccessful right now. Just 4.5hrs last night. That will set me back a bit.
3 hours is not enough time to maintain my bungalow, let alone our house in Stanmore. I am looking for ways to stick to 3 hours, which means being out of contact with everyone else for about 13 hours each day. That is simply not realistic.
I actually do a lot better when my wife is away, as she is today, for three sleeps.
I am bemused by this as I get my own meals, keep the kitchen tidy, put out the bins, do the shopping and look after my cat. Cant live like this permanently and I do give a lot of thought to moving to a care home. I go out 5 times a week so I am not the total invalid. Maybe the SF will ease a lot more. Many other long term SS seem to manage a whole mornig and I hope I can emulate that. One day . One day.
Time for cold chicken. I lkie cold chicken. Usually with a jacket potato but tonight I fancy chicken sandwhiches, so thats what I will have.
best wishes
Colin
Colin, I think sometimes we forget how much SSs have to struggle to achieve even the small stuff - when I read your posts, I don't factor in the short time you have available to get things done, so it's so wonderful that you still choose to give generously to others on the site - thank you. You're clearly coming through a low patch, and hopefully you will apply your usual stoicism and strategising to make sure you regain your mojo asap. Now I suspect you aren't the only one in the house who likes cold chicken, I'm sure Oscar is giving you lots of fond attention at the moment, awaiting a few titbits ...? Buon apetito x ? ? !!
Sorry to hear your sleep pattern is a bit haywire again. I know 4.5 hrs will not be enough for you. I was in a funny sleep pattern about a week ago. I went to bed about 11:30pm and slept until about 1- 1.30am then dozed on and off for the rest of the night - not great and I was pretty low because of it. I was like this for a couple of nights but thankfully it’s settled again and I am sleeping well.
Maybe when your sleep pattern settles you will feel differently about moving to a care home, hope so anyway. Why not try and have a home career on the days your wife is not there instead of going into a care home (I don’t think you would like it). They would be able to do the chores you can’t manage and do some shopping for you, make a meal and most of all would be company for you when your wife is away. Maybe your church could suggest someone.
Im not sure about the headphones, I’ve used a tinnitus programme of pink noise but it didn’t really help that much. I can sometimes tune the noise out as I have got used to it now. I think it’s due to the stroke dont you.
Ive got another morning of Christmas shopping planned for tomorrow and hopefully will be finished by the afternoon, that’s the plan anyway.
Take care
Ann
I am lucky because I can watch TV for hours and use a PC for a couple of hours without any fatigue. So I am really pleased to swap notes with you and many others.
Sooty Oscarthemagnificent had a spoonfull or two of the chicken. He is spoilt far too much and he likes Sheba pouches, Whiskas pouches , Dreamies, catnip and some of the dry foods. So plain old chicken is not eaten by him.
I do however take every bit of chicken from the carcus and deliver it to a lovely lady up the road. She takes in ill, lost and surplus cats and houses them with suitable families. She is a vegetarian and hates to cook meat. So I take the chicken ready for the cats. She has helped me lots in the care of cats. It is her life, ever since her husband died about ten years ago. She has typically 15 cats around most days. What amazes me is how kind the cats are to each other. A new kitten arrived when I was there and two cats fussed over it, one licking it. I dont asociate cats with that sort of kindness.
Sooty has just gone out for thenight. I hate him being out all night, in the cold. But thats what he opts for. He slept the whole day indoors.
Time for an early night
Colin
Sleep is one key to our recovery. Very pleased that yours has settled. I am OK when on my own, Rosemarys away trips are fine by me. And it lets her get away from me. We have an old fashioned marriage whereby "the man" does certain things and "the woman" does other stuff. We bought our first house weeks before the prices went mad in 1971. So we could afford a decent standard of life on one salary. So it is still assumed that "the man" will tend to insurance, maintenance, all finances, know everything about everything. work out all (her) travel arrangements and lots more. It is the relentless pressure that gets to me. Rosemary doesnt think of it like that. She thinks it is no effort to answer her queries every ten minutes. As she says, she is entitled to ask.
She knows I still have a lot of knowledge and still has perhaps a better grasp of many things. So I must tell her what to do. My mother in law was in a "Sunrise" care home and it was /is brilliant. So I know where I am going ! I dont expect to actually go. Rosemary could not manage the bungalow on her own. My son can not manage our London house on his own. The pressure is all on me. It would be OK if my brain would work. But it doesnt. It forgets things, cant work logically and wants to shut down most of the time.
But enough of this. The sun shone today. I am much improved and am looking to get back to where I was a month ago, in no time at all.
The evenings are no longer shortening and we havent had snow yet, so winter will seem short. I havent even light the log burner yet. Its all made up, ready to use and logs are stacked indoors to see us through a week.
ttfn
Colin