Since 4/9/06

During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics) and just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes. They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food - while she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening. Ingrid's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00 pm, Ingrid passed away.) She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today. Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.

It only takes a minute to read this...

Neurologist say that if they can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours they can totally reverse the effects of a stroke...totally. The trick is getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE

Thank God for the sense to remember the "3" steps, ST and R. Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S *Ask the individual to SMILE.

T *Ask the person to TALK . to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE

(Coherently) (i.e. . . It is a sunny day)

R *Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

{NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this: Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue... if the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke}

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call 9-1-1 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

This is so simple but so important. Make sure the people who love you and you love have this information. Send them this link. Cut and past this information and email it. Print it and mail it. Pass it on.

Mailing Address:

Patrick's of Pratt Street

934 W. Pratt Street

at the corner of Schroeder

Baltimore, Maryland 21223 USA

Phone 410-576-8899

Email: Patrick@Patricksofpratt.com

This is an e-mail I received on 4/17/06, about this page

Hey Pat,

   Great idea adding this info. Stroke, as well as many health issues, are often ignored by us all. I don't know if I ever mentioned this to you, but I missed a stroke by pure luck a few years back. I was getting what I thought were sinus headaches. I went to my allergist and was given some medication and told to add an over the counter pain killer if needed.  Unfortunately this only worked for a while and the headaches were back. When they got so bad that I went to my regular doctor I was given a pill to swallow and another under my tongue that dissolved into my system. After three doses just like this and a half hour in between each Dr, Kay filled me in that my blood pressure was at such a high level that I should have had a stroke in the office that even an emergency room could not have saved me from. If it wasn't controlled at that point I was going to take an ambulance ride to St. Agnes.

  The big problem here is that the increased blood pressure creates pressure inside your sinuses and your nose. The doctor naturally thought that since it was allergy season it had to be the answer and did what he thought was the best coarse of action. After I told him what the other doctor found every patient was checked before allergy shots as well as office visits.

    Many sinus medications will increase your blood pressure, often making the doctor only think that you need a stronger dose. If the doctor is a specialist he may not look at thing's in the same way the your primary care would. You speak with all of your customer's and the place is always up beat and a pleasure to go to. But when the chance is there and you can share some info that may save a life, over the Internet or standing behind a beer at the bar, do what you just did and pass it along.

  Some people would debate that it's good or bad that I missed the stroke, but I never had someone tell me what seemed like a simple headache could be an imbalance in my body that could have killed me. Just for the record my B.P. still goes up from time to time, but with the right pills morning and night, watching my diet, and a little exercise three times a week I'm still here without the headaches and the stroke zone stays way away.

  Now go get me a good joke, that helps keep the B.P. down too.

                                                                                              Craig

Craigstrohmer@aol.com

This short read could save

a life.