I came across this community whilst waiting in the Critical Care waiting room and although I have not had much time to go through the whole site yet reading some of the stories of young recoveries after a stroke has been amazing.
My daughter is only 27 and 21 weeks pregnant had a major stroke a week ago, and as you can imagine our worlds have been shattered.
She underwent surgery to control the brain swelling, and then being told it is just the waiting game now to see how extensive the brain damage will be is just heart breaking. We have been told worst case scenario will be she wonât wake up, and best case will be she will recover, but be paralysed on one side.
We were also told that Poppy Mai (baby), may not make it initially, but she is still strong moving around and a good heartbeat.
After almost a week she is now off sedation and moving her right side, with some little movement to her left arm. She has not opened her eyes as yet and potentially done some thumbs up on command, so we have some little hope.
Although the nurses are great, we are very much in the dark as what is happening now and also not knowing what happens next.
What happens next is a long journey. We often say stroke recovery is a marathon, not a sprint. It is a good sign that she has movement in her left arm as the arm is usually slower to recover than the leg.
I was in a similar situation post-stroke although not pregnant. I was in a coma for 3 weeks and my family were told that if I came round I would not walk. Within a year I was walking short distances; living on my own; driving and preparing to return to work.
Your daughter will need your support so pace yourself. Come back here if you have any questions
Hi - I am so sorry to hear about yr daughter - you are in the right place both here and there. This is the community none of us wanted to join but personally I have found some incredible people here and a lot of wisdom i trust you will too.
Although I have no personal experience of such a severe stroke - mine were comparatively mild and ischemic but I have known many here with severe stroke there are incredible stories of recovery. Everyoneâs journey is individual tho personal circumstances and severity health and other factors all play a role i dont need to tell you. So all I will say is recovery is possible. And your daughter is young. It sounds from what you say there are also encouraging first signs . And she has you i cant understate how good that is for her.
So every reason for optimism and I pray for your daughter and you. Please keep posting and say how things go. Im sure there will be more posts everyoneâs experience helps everyone else. Please give your daughter our best wishes.
After only a week those are good signs so farâŚ.so sorry this has happened to your family itâs such a devastating experience that is rarely thought of let alone expectedâŚI can only imagine your shock. Lots of our community have experienced similar and will be here to offer support as you all progress forwardâŚ.xx
Hi @Dadindistress Sorry to hear of your daughterâs stroke, as a mum of 3 I canât begin to imagine what you and your family are going through .
We are a merry band of stroke survivors and their carers and families and between us we have a wealth of experience and information to share and I hope you will find this a useful place to be. It sounds like your daughter is already making some good signs of progress. Please feel free to jump on here if you have any questions or if you need a shoulder to cry on or you just need to have a good rant. Sadly stroke is a roller-coaster of emotions and affects not only the stroke survivor but everyone around them. Please stay in touch and let us know how your daughter is doing.
Another organisation you might find useful is Different Strokes, a UK Charity which is aimed at young stroke survivors wwwww.differentstrokes.co.uk
Sending positive thoughts and best wishes to you and your family.
I am so sorry to hear your sad story and wish you all well in the future. As a stroke survivor, I am only too aware of one thing - NEVER LOSE HOPE ! Because things can and often do change and improve. I was told quite forcefully that I would never walk again. I remember closing my eyes and thinking that all I would ever see again was then bedroom ceiling = a terrible thought ! But now, 5 years on, I can now walk again, with the aid of a quadstick, admittedly, but a walk nevertheless.
So sorry to hear this. Like others have said, stroke recovery is a long road and everyoneâs recovery is different. Know that weâre all here for you and crossing everything that she comes round, makes a good recovery and gets to be a great mum
@Dadindistress - I think the above from Baldrick is a good starting place as it should offer you some comfort and peace of mind to know you are in the best place(s) for your daughter and grand-daughter to get the help they need.
Please ask questions and seek advice as needed - the doctors and nurses will help you with specifics relating to your daughterâs situation and other places such as this forum for general advice, often based on personal experiences.
Though your daughterâs situation is fairly unusual from the perspective of this forum, we have had a few posts recently from one or two who can relate.
You can do a search using the search function and using the search word âPregnantâ and you will get a list of posts as per the graphic attached.
Also, I include a link to a recent post that may help.
Wishing you, your daughter and grand-daughter all the best.
@Dadindistress hi & welcome to the community that no one ever expects to join. I am really sorry to hear about the situation with your daughter and I can only begin to imagine what you must all be going through at this moment in time.
Stroke recovery is a bit of a waiting game and often is a long road. You should be encouraged by the early signs of progress that your daughter is showing and there is every reason to be optimistic that she will continue to improve. Being young will definitely be on her side and will help in the recovery journey and I am sure that you and family and friends will support her as much as she needs to be supported.
Stroke affects everyone around the individual who has had the stroke as well as the individual. It is still very early days for you yet and I imagine you just want everything to get back to normal as soon as possible but please be patient as things can take a little bit of time.
Donât forget to look after yourself as well as she is going to need you to be fit and well to help her through the next few weeks and months as she begins her recovery.
It is good to hear that the baby is doing okay too and Iâm sure that has been a bit of a relief as well. If youâve got any questions ask away there is always somebody around who will offer some support and advice.
@Dadindistress im guessing because you mention brain swelling that your daughter had an haemorragic stroke (bleed) rather than an ischaemic stroke (clot) I had an haemorrhagic stroke too,and brain surgery 3 times a craniectomy,a cranioplasty and coiling of the burst blood vessel.i write to you because my 3 daughters and mum were told Iâd probably spend the rest of my life staring at the ceiling,and yet I communicate using an AAC communication device,and have recently begun to talk,have faith in your daughter,talk to her,hold her hand etc. sheâs likely âstill thereâ her brain just needs time to rewire.the fact that my daughters didnât give up on me is what made my brain rewire,please have hope.
Thank you for bringing this post to my attention. Iâd love to try and offer some hope, if nothing else. I donât claim to have the answers but I do share the same trauma & may be able to share how Iâve navigated it.
Itâs my pleasure
I had a feeling that you might be happy to help and so it was a âno-brainerâ for me, if youâll pardon the pun, if indeed itâs a pun!
I expect @Dadindistress will contact you when heâs ready to seek your advice
@Dadindistress so sorry to hear this news it must be distressing in every way. I donât want to add much more are so many great people here who can add more knowledge than me. I wholeheartedly wish you and all your family the very best at this time and pray for a full recovery and safe delivery of the baby.
Different Strokes is a charity for working age stroke survivors so worth looking them up. They have a very good Facebook group which are a useful place to ask questions to other survivors. The Brain and Spine Foundation support people with any neurological condition and what is good to know about them is that their helpline is manned by neuro nurses so theyâre useful for any âtechnical questionsâ you may have. Itâs very early days for your daughter so hang in there! The brain has amazing capacity to rewire itself so those lost connections can be rebuilt.
I had a haemorrhagic stroke just over five years ago. When I was sedated I had no mobility down my left side. When they removed the sedation the movement etc returned. I hope your family has as positive an outcome as I did. If there is anything in my journey that can help please let me know. All the best. Jon
Welcome to the community, Iâm really sorry to read about your daughters stroke. It can come as such a shock when these things happen and family are often left feeling unsure of what to do or what happens next.
I can see you have had some great responses from our members and I hope youâll find these responses and the community helpful for you and your family as you navigate through this difficult time. You can also reach out to our Stroke Support Helpline:0303 3033 100 they will be able to talk you through the likely next steps.
If you need anything whilst youâre using the Online Community, please donât hesitate to tag me using the @ symbol and my username.
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