Hi. For the past two years I have been looking after dad at the family home. Sadly dad passed away on the 3rd February 2024. I looked after him 24/7 with occassional help from carers - which he paid for. On Christmas Eve 2023 I suffered a stroke. At the time I didn’t realise what was happening and remembered that FAST ad but forgot what the T stood for =TIME! and as I had just been skiing put it down to extreme tiredness and went to bed. I woke up 6 hours later with dad wanting to have a pee. I turned to the right and fell out of bed crashing against the radiator. The left half of my body didn’t exist! I managed to crawl along the bedroom floor and haul myself to standing to help dad now in the bathroom. I just managed to help him down with his shorts. Then I helped him back to bed and went back to bed. At 8.30 Xmas day he woke me again banging on the bannister saying we were late for work - he had dementia, diagnosed in June 2022. I fell out of bed again and only then realised it was serious. Pressed the Care Call watch on his wrist. If only I had done that 12 hour before! 12 months later after lots of gym work and physio sessions, I can walk - did 15 reps every minute right after the stroke in A and E, and it came back overnight thank the lord. But I have since heard about this stimulation of the 9th crainial nerve (Vagus) using a non-invasive method. Think is it costs £599.95 from Nurosym , consists of a simple ear piece wired to a stimulator hand set 1-8 intensity. Anyone using this with physio and had good results?
Sorry about stroke / losing your Dad etc.
The ninth cranial nerve is the glossopharyngeal nerve (CN IX). It has sensory, motor, and parasympathetic functions. The vagus is the 10th cranial nerve. There is a lot you can research about it. I do Qigong, for example.
Good luck, Roland
Hi @theskier
Welcome to the community, I’m sorry to hear about your stroke and about your dad passing away.
It’s great to hear that you’re walking. I’m sure there are some will be some more members along shortly with experiences that may help you.
If you need anything whilst you’re using the Online Community, please don’t hesitate to tag me using the @ symbol and my username.
Anna
Hi @theskier, strangely enough I caught the local news a couple of days ago where they were reporting on a trial that is just starting at Bournemouth hospital (the hospital that I got blue lighted into) on the use of VNS and, although I couldn’t be sure, the device didn’t look to be the Nurosym device (it was black and looked less flashy/apple like) although it was and in-ear wired device so of the same ilk.
Unfortunately I am no longer under the care of Bournemouth (they are my closest hospital but I’m just outside their boundary so got discharged from their service at the 6 month scan point, even though I couldn’t even walk and never got transferred to another service!!) so I don’t hold out much hope of being involved in the trial and they appear to be targetting weakness rather than my issue of sensation/CPSP.
I do however have other links into the hospital (my sister works there for example) so am hoping to be able to get updates on their results as and when anything emerges, but that could be some considerable time.
The following blurb relates although the associted photo does not show the VNS device unfortunately, only grip strength being tested.
@theskier ,
the following link provides details of the wider trial (that Bournemouth are a part of) so it’s probably worth checking of there is something going on local to you that you could get involved in.
@theskier please note that part of the entry criteria is having had an Ischeamic stroke so that would rule me and the rest of the bleeders out.
@theskier just popping by to say hi & welcome to the community. Sorry to hear of your dad’s passing & your stroke too. You have certainly been through it lately.
I don’t have any experience of the neurosym but I see @llareggub has offered some great info already. If you do try it I am sure we’d all be interested in hearing how you get on.
Wishing you all the best.
Ann
Hi @theskier welcome to the forum, so sorry for your loss 
I don’t have any experience of the Nurosym, would love to experiment with it but not at that cost. @Trace57 brought up a discussion about last November you might like to read through on thoughts back then 
Lorraine
Stroke Improvement Group
I am quite sure that HRV heart rate variability is improved far better by grounding. I say this from personal experience, but there are scientific experiments that corroborate this. R
Hi @theskier - Just a quick message to welcome to the community and to wish you all the best as you recover from your stroke.
Namaste|
