First Responders

Recently my neighbour, his wife, and friends did a charity cycle ride from Land’s End back here to Oxhill. This is even more remarkable when you know that he is a stroke survivor. Mike Druce is a Trustee of Different Strokes, a charity helping young stroke survivors. To make a donation to this very worthy cause and find out more about this charity cycle ride go to Mike’s blog, “ Cycle Lands End to Oxhill at the website http://cyclelandsendtooxhill.blogspot.com/.

There are other very important ways to help stroke victims and that is by being the first person in the chain to recognize the signs of a stroke and then calling 999 fast and saying, “Please send an Ambulance, someone is having a stroke”. This has a vital impact as to what happens to the stroke victim.

The Ambulance Service put strokes in the same class as heart attacks.

A stroke is a sudden blockage or rupture of blood vessels in the brain. Without a constant blood supply, brain cells are damaged or destroyed.

Signs and Symptoms of a stroke are:

Limb weakness or numbness of arms or legs.

Weakness of the face on one side.

Difficulty with speech or understanding speech.

Clumsiness and or Confusion.

DO NOT assume they are aware they are having or have had a stroke.

A stroke victim does not have to be having all these symptoms to still be having or have had a stroke.

DO NOT say, let’s just wait and see what happens. If your house was on fire would you wait and see how much burnt down before you made that 999 call? This is the same thing!

The stroke victim needs to be in Hospital very fast, nothing else will do.

A Stroke is more common in older age groups and particularly those with raised blood pressure, but cannot be excluded from any age group. It may be an advantage to know what your blood pressure is.

Both my Parents died of a stroke.

Mick Shepard, viper @ viperrecovery.co.uk

07977149317 - This is my Emergency only, Ambulance Mobile.

07976298228 - Mobile.

01295680644 - Home.

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Send mail to the editor of the Oxhill News at news-editor @ oxhill.org.uk.

Last modified: August 16, 2010