I had a mild ischaemic stroke in May of this year. I am an 84 year old man, fortunate enough to have a wonderful wife who is a great support.
My symptoms were weakness on my right side and balance issues. These have lessened in the weeks since my discharge.
However, I have almost lost my appetite and much of my sense of taste. Diarrhoea and flatulence are also annoying issues. These symptoms, and stomach discomfort early in the morning have not reduced in the weeks since the stoke.
My list of medications will seem familiar to many I am sure:-
Bisoprolol 1.25mg
Clopidogrel 75mg
Atorvastatin 80mg
Lansoprasol 15mg
Are these symptoms of the stroke or the medications?
If anyone has similar experiences I should be grateful to hear from them. I have an appointment for a âmedication reviewâ with a nurse but that is weeks away.
Thanks,
John
Hi @Jobe95 and welcome to the forum
The lack of taste has affected many on the forum to varying degrees and improved for many too.
I was very much in the same boat nearly 4yrs ago post stroke. No taste and lost 3 stone in weight that first year of recovery. Sense of taste did return sometime in the first 18 months, weight stopped dropping and began to regain it thankfully.
There can be a lot of muscle wastage after strokes, due as much from lack of use and mobility after a stroke.
Wind/flatulence could well be side effect to medications. Iâm on Metformin for diabetes as it is renound for that. Incidentally, a nice warm cup of mint tea after meals will help relieve any bloatingI use Pukaâs 3 Mint tea
But do speak with your pharmacists and see what they advise, you can just phone them to save you a trip to the chemist. Some side effects do settle down over time as your body adjusts, but with having the Diarrhoea Iâd definitely seek the experts advise first, GP/Pharmacist.
In saying all that, it is still vital that you eat regularly regardless of lack of taste. Healing takes a lot of energy and that comes from food. It might even be beneficial to boost your nutrient intake with supplements such as Ensure or complan. You donât want to compromise your recovery due to any neglect which may lower your immune system.
Also by not eating much can also cause flatulence and diarrhoea as the digestive system continues to digest so your waste becomes more liquidy.
@Jobe95 Hi & welcome to the forum. Sorry youâve had cause to join us.
I also have Loss of appetite & have lost a tonne of weight as a result. I make sure i eat 3 meals a day regardless of whether I want them or not & i also take Ensure plus supplement drinks which have helped keep my weight steady.
In time your taste should improve. Keep eating different things in the meantime & hopefully that will help your tastebuds return to normal.
Since my hemorrhagic stroke to the right Basal Ganglia in November, I really donât like the taste of most food, food I have always enjoyed now makes me feel nauseous, I really hope this does change in time, I have also lost weight because of this. Iâm really glad to have been introduced to this forum, itâs extremely helpful and provides reassurance that youâre not alone. I do find it a nightmare typing with 1 hand though! Iâm so used to speed typing.
With regard to your issue with typing, have you considered using voice to text?
A friend of mine uses this and it seems to work quite well, though there are occasional blips as is sometimes the case with predictive text.
Hi, I have had Botox in the muscles so it is now very relaxed, but do have to wear a sling when moving around, as my shoulder is now hurting. I have been using electro stimulation on it and exercises it, but it is still paralysed, apart from when I lay on my bed with elbow down I can move it back, forth and sideways, which gives me great hope.
I too have lost loads of weight since my stroke. I now take ensure Juce supplement drinks. If you can try & eat normally still. If you canât try & fortify the food you can eat e.g. butter, milk & cheese to things, marvel into yoghurts etc. Failing that try a supplement drink. I have ensure but there are many others like complan out there. Find one that suits you.
Hi John. I had an Ischaemic stroke in October. Recovering well thankfully. My taste is different also - I used to love Sushi and now it just tastes like rotten fish. So disappointedâšď¸. Plus I have an increased sensitivity to caffeine now, so only one coffee a day now.
Hi Jeanette,
Glad you are recovering well from your stroke. My news is good. After my stroke last May I almost completely lost my appetite and sense of taste. My expensive delivery from the Wine club didnât prevent it tasting like the worst plonk. Around January things started to change and I now have more sense of taste, although it is not fully restored. If my experience gives you some hope I would be pleased.
Another point made by others above I would like to repeat. Even if you donât fancy any food at all, do force yourself to eat something regularly. Through neglecting my nourishment I lost weight and was almost diagnosed with anaemia. Your recovering body needs food even if you donât always feel like it.
I had wondered if my lack of taste was caused by a side effect of the powerful medication I was on. The partial return of taste coincided with agreeing with my GP to change my gastro resistant drug from Lanzoprazole to Pantoprazole.(not for reasons connected with taste). However, I have no evidence that this wasnât just coincidence.
I do hope that in time you will recover more of your appetite and taste.
John
I would echo your sentiments about eating regardless of whether you want it or not. I lost my appetite with my stroke & never feel hungry. As a result i have lost over 4 stone in weight. I still donât get hungry but I do force myself to eat 3 meals a day whether I want them or not. Sadly the weight hasnât gone back on but I have finally stopped losing it.
Oh definitely! After my stroke 6 months ago I didnât eat much I couldnât taste anything was like Covid in that way all over again. My lack of eating because I couldnât taste food or anything caused concern in hospital as I was dropping weight too fast and getting weaker, but yes you arenât alone
