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 6:00pm, 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... A neurologist says
that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse
the effects of a stroke...totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke
recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for
within 3 hours, which is tough.
RECOGNIZING A STROKE
Thank Goodness for the sense to
remember the "3" steps, STR.
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 sunny out today)
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 9-1-1immediately and describe
the symptoms to the dispatcher. A cardiologist says if
everyone who gets this e-mail sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at
least one life will be saved.
