12 days ago, I had to call an ambulance for my mum, who is in her 70s. She got up in the morning to use the bathroom and noticed her leg becoming weak, numb, and cold. She had to drag her left foot, which felt like it was shaking. At the same time, she experienced heaviness and weakness in her left arm. She called my sister but had difficulty speaking and developed slurred speech. She was unable to stand.
She was alone at home, but we arrived quickly. Otherwise, the ambulance wouldn’t have been able to get in. The paramedics said her blood pressure was unusually high. By the time they assessed her, she was able to speak and squeeze both hands. One of her feet (I can’t recall if it was the left or right) appeared slightly redder. Her symptoms seemed to come and go over a period of 1.5 hours.
They asked her to raise her hand, which she could do initially, but then she said she couldn’t. The paramedics suspected a transient ischemic attack (TIA).
They said she could stay at home but offered to take her to A&E. We decided to take her to A&E ourselves.
The doctors noted that the repetitive nature of her symptoms was unusual.
At the hospital, they ran tests and gave her 300 mg of aspirin (gastro-protected). and sent her home.
The next day, the TIA clinic prescribed her:
- Clopidogrel
- Atorvastatin
- Aspirin (75 mg)
- Lansoprazole
Over the next few days, she continued experiencing numbness on her left side, but only in the morning, improving by the afternoon. She was terrified of becoming paralyzed. These symptoms eventually resolved.
A few days later, we went back to A&E because she was still scared of the numbness. The doctors found that her iron levels were low and advised treatment for that.
Two Days ago
A couple of days ago, she woke up at 6am to use the bathroom for a pee. She had at a sudden diarrhea at same time, which was black in colour. While washing her hands, she lost consciousness and woke up a few minutes later on the bathroom floor. She had an injury. She didn’t want to get out of bed afterward.
She did n’t want to go to A&E and was tired of the long wait times.
The next day, her stool was black again, and she barely ate anything.
The GP took her BP, which was normal and then it dropped suddenly when asked her to stand.
Another long wait in A&E. She has since been admitted to the hospital and given a bed. She has a fever, and the doctors are considering an endoscopy to investigate further.
