I don’t understand this as a TIA by definition is transient, therefore shouldn’t cause any lingering issues
(This was in reply to someone saying they had a TIA almost a year ago and still suffer some numbness)
Hello Matt - strictly speaking and by definition transient would suggest there shouldn’t be any lingering issues, but …
… clearly something is not right here and I am sorry to continue this conversation here, possibly much to the annoyance of original poster AndreaMillen. However, I do feel it is important to try and get peace of mind on this and I feel, nor I nor you are alone in this.
I would like to open a new post in the subject of TIA and where I hope we can manage the post as best as we can to “keep to the subject”.
I have been reading up on TIA on the NHS website as well as the Stroke Association website as well as other sites that return results from a Google search and it seems to be there is scope for confusion and perhaps that is possibly where were are.
For now, I will end this comment until I have had a chance to do a little thinking about how to address this issue with a view to trying to make it a little bit more clearer as to what is actually going on here.
My apologies to anyone who is annoyed with me and thinking why I can’t keep my nose out, but I can’t help it. it’s what was brought here to do 
Namaste|
1 Like
Sorry to be clear I was replying to the poster who had a TIA last year and still suffers from numbness. Not Andrea!
3 Likes
Hey Matt - no need to apologise. I know you responded to poster Andy2, but as I understhand it, the way this forum works is that the originator (AndreaMullin in this case) gets notified anytime anyone responds (unless she turns off the notifications).
Also just to be clear, I was referring to myself as the person muddying the waters not you - so please, no apology required.
If anyone should be apologising, it should surely be me 
Thank you for supporting the forum with your views - they help clear the fog and in some cases clear the cobwebs around the grey cells.
2 Likes
Hi all
We split this post from another one so you can continue the conversation here about TIA should you wish.
Anna
1 Like
Can you add in the post by Andy I was referring to? It looks like I’m randomly shouting into the air about TIA’s here lol
Hi @matt_d13
We didn’t add that post in as it was referring to/answering the original posters questions in the other thread and we wanted them to have that to refer back to should they wish.
Anna
As moderator Ann has kindly created this new post for us by splitting from the other post, below you will find in summary format my findings on effects of a TIA.
Interestingly there appears to be a clear difference in advice given by the NHS (UK) and Stroke Association (UK).
– Research Findings Summary Start –
Transient ischaemic attack (TIA)
After getting involved in a few posts on this forum, I did some research on what exactly is a TIA. I am rather surprised to learn, unless I have misunderstood something along the way, that there is a difference of opinion on the effects of a TIA depending on who you wish to consult.
You can check this for yourselves on the respective websites of the UK NHS where most of the UK patients will be treated and the UK Stroke Association which helps and supports stroke survivors.
Links:
UK NHS - Transient ischaemic attack (TIA) - NHS
The NHS site also has a video ~ 5 minutes about TIA.
UK Stroke Association - Effects of TIA | Stroke Association
As I understand it:
-
the NHS says that a TIA has NO lasting effects
-
the Stroke Association says there can be some long term effects, including fatigue and emotional impact such as anxiety and low mood.**
This leads me to ask WHY do two leading UK organisations offer a different view on the long-term effects of a TIA.
Worryingly for me, since it is the NHS that treats us, why do they say there are NO long-term lasting effects.
Is this a problem with the use of language by the respective organisations?
– Research Findings Summary End –
My hope was this would make things crystal clear wrt what exactly is a TIA and how does it effect you, but I guess this is not meant to be.
I tried …
:
2 Likes
I’m glad you looked into this and posted about it.
I (naively) knew nothing about stroke or had even heard of a TIA until I had my stroke in September 2024.
To muddy the waters a bit more, the US seem a lot more likely to call small strokes TIA even with lingering symptoms.
In an age where everyone’s connected to the entire world through their phones, this can be confusing.
I’m certain some doctors would call what I had a TIA, but by NHS guidelines someone with lingering symptoms had a ‘full stroke’.
The spectrum of which effects people get from stroke is so wide that it feels wrong to call a small stroke, a stroke, when someone with the exact same diagnosis could be totally disabled.
Personally I struggle with the actual diagnosis more than anything (the mental implications). Had it been defined a TIA I don’t think I’d have suffered so badly from low mood/depression as there is a lot of stigma around stroke - based on what some people know of it (disability).
My neuro consultant couldn’t see the brain damage on a scan almost three months after the stroke. They said something along the lines of it can heal over so much that MRI can’t pick it up on scans.
But I had the same diagnosis as my friend, in the same area of their brain, who is sadly permanently disabled. It doesn’t seem fair for us both to say we had the same thing.
3 Likes
A couple of years after my stroke I had a TIA. The FAST symptoms were “transient” as in they lasted about 30 mins and I felt what I called out of sorts for the rest of the day. The fatigue however lasted months. That might have been because I also have post stroke fatigue too but there was a definite increase in my fatigue.
Maybe the NHS are talking about the FAST symptoms and the Stroke Association also factor in fatigue etc which is not really mentioned, or certainly in my experience, by the NHS.
4 Likes
Thank you so much to everyone who brought this up. Especially ManjoB for the references. 15 months on from my TIA/Stroke I am confused as to what I actually had and at first I thought the terms were interchangeabe. So I will read the references to see whether things become any clearer.
3 Likes
Hello Manny - I don’t believe the terms are interchangeable, but please do read up and satisfy yourself. TIA is like a warning that you are likely to have a stroke or maybe another TIA.
Glad to have helped and do keep us posted on your recovery
1 Like
The way my stroke consultant put it is TIA’s, mini strokes, are all strokes! And he was very adamant about that 
3 Likes