Stroke Recovery
"Have you tried everything to recover from your stroke, but feel let down? "
A Message From Fraser Simpson, Stroke Rehabilitation Specialist Neurophysiotherapist
Dear Stroke Survivor,
- Have you or a loved one suffered a stroke?
- Did the stroke happen recently? Or was it a number of years ago?
- Are you worried or have you been told that further recovery is not possible?
- Or Are you Concerned because your walking or independence is getting worse as you get a bit older?
- Are you frustrated that you have not had much rehab to help you use your hand and arm better?
- ...or Perhaps you are suffering from Pain in your affected shoulder/arm or leg and you don’t know if it can get better?
- Do you ever feel like you are missing out on further recovery because you don’t have the support of a Neuro Rehabilitation Specialist Physio?
- Are you still looking for long term support from a specialist neuro physio to help you reach your full rehab potential?
If any of this sounds like you or your loved one and you are looking to get help and support for your recovery and your life after suffering a stroke then you have come to the right place.
You see, many people who have survived a stroke in Glasgow don’t always reach their best potential recovery and have been told…
- “You’ll just have to live with it”
- “This is as good as your going to get” / “you’ve plateaued with your recovery”
- Or maybe you have finished your allotted NHS therapy sessions and need ongoing support from a Specialist Neuro Physiotherapist to help improve your walking, independence and use of your affected hand
- Your stroke was several years ago so you can’t make any more recovery
The Truth Is...
- Many people make recovery after a stroke despite being told that they have “plateaued”
- You can still make improvements in your walking, independence and hand and arm function many years after you suffered your stroke
- You have to live with the effects of your stroke for the rest of your life and you need the support of a specialist to help keep you as active and independent as you want to be.
- Many people with pain in their affected shoulder, arm and hand after a stroke suffer unnecessarily as many of the causes of the pain can be treated and the pain reduced or even completely gone!
- Many people who have survived a stroke have difficulty getting to appointments and need a Specialist Neuro Physio to come to their own home to help them continue their recovery
- Many people don’t realise that Online Video Consultations can help you continue your recovery when seeing a specialist ‘face-to-face’ regularly is not possible due to Social Distancing or having to Socially Isolate
At Simpson Physiotherapy we are Neuro and Older Adult Specialist Physiotherapists. We help Stroke survivors, just like you, make meaningful recovery in your walking, your hand and arm function, and your independence. We want to help you live as active, independent and pain free life as you are able.
We know that it can be very confusing to decide exactly what you should do if you are looking for specialist help from a Neuro Physiotherapist after surviving a stroke.
- Most likely you will have had several months of physiotherapy through the NHS which, sadly, is time-limited and you feel you have more recovery to make
- Perhaps you have seen another physio or healthcare provider but nothing they said or did seemed to help that much
- It’s possibly been a few years since you suffered your stroke and you don’t know if further improvements in your walking, use of your hand and arm, and independence is even possible!
- Or, you have noticed that your walking is slowly getting harder, or your arm and hand are deteriorating and your are starting to lose what independence you did have little by little
- Maybe you have tried to self-treat using YouTube exercises or practicing your walking more, but feel that none of those worked and may have even made some of your problems worse!
- Your painful arm and shoulder just won’t get better, no matter what you try!
It can be overwhelming to try and make a decision with all the concerns you have and the choices out there. The biggest fear that many people have is What will happen if I don’t make the right choice?
So, most people get stuck trying to make a decision about what to do next. They go days, weeks, months (even years!) without taking action.
When It Comes to living your best, most active and independent life after surviving a stroke…
You must choose the right Neuro Physiotherapist provider for you. If you don’t, you could end up not getting the support you need to make the fullest recovery you can, limiting not only your recovery but your independence and enjoyment of the rest of your life.
Getting the right support and treatment from a Specialist Neuro Physiotherapy Service for Stroke Rehab, like us here at Simpson Physiotherapy, is VITAL to getting the most out of your recovery and rehabilitation, helping you live as independent and active a life as you can despite suffering a stroke.
We want to help you and we want to know that we are likely to be able to help BEFORE you book an appointment. In order to help us do that we have a few steps to follow….
Step #1 - We Want (and need) to Listen to Your Story
This is one of our BIGGEST pet peeves. Nobody has the time to speak with you about your concerns anymore. Unfortunately, we all know how stretched our healthcare system is, everyone is so time poor that we feel we don’t want to pester or burden people with our problems. Besides, we secretly hope they we will get better without having to work at it if we just leave it for long enough!
However, for us to help you properly, we need and want to get to know you and your story. We take the time to listen to you and get to know every single person we work with. This is absolutely essential in helping you get better and make positive improvements in your life and independence.
If we are unable to help or we are not the best provider for you, we will most likely be able to tell you once we have had a chance to speak with you over the phone.
Step #2 - Find YOUR UNIQUE SOLUTION
The effects of a stroke are unique to every person, thus why you are having these problems is unique to you. What works for your friend or loved one may not necessarily work for you. All too often treatments are too short and not specific enough to you to make much (if any) difference.
We will find out:
- What recovery you have made
- What Goals you have – what do you want to do that you can’t right now
- What is causing the pain (if you have any)
- What has worked well for you in the past and what hasn’t worked
- What we can do to help you achieve your goals
That way we can tailor a treatment and support programme that is specifically designed for you as an individual. Giving you the best possible chance of maximizing your recovery and getting some or all of your independence back.
Step #3 - SUPPORT YOU IN THE WAY YOU NEED TO HELP YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
Our treatment plan and appointments are built around you and your individual needs and capabilities.
Have you ever been in the situation where the journey to and from an appointment tires you out so much, or causes so much stress and hassle, that you decide not to go? Or you struggle to get out of the house, so going to a clinic appointment is out of the question?
We understand that this is a significant problem faced by many stroke survivors. That is why we come to you! We provide home visits and video consultations for all of the people we support. This is hugely beneficial in helping you maximise your energy for our sessions and get the most out of therapy.
No more having to rely on friends and family or patient transport to get to your appointments. No having to combat traffic and being at the mercy of roadworks and traffic jams!
Q. What if I need someone with me more than once a week to help me practice my exercises because I won’t be able to do them on my own?
A. No problem, we absolutely provide a support package that works for you to help you get the best out of your therapy. We currently have clients who have 2 to 3 home visits a week, and others who we support through online video consultations.
Q. I don’t live in or near Glasgow, where you provide home visits, will Video Consultations work for me?
A. That is a great question, we will only be able to answer that after we have had a chance to speak with you and possibly do a trial video consultation. What I can say, is that we a using video consultations with several stroke survivors and they are having some terrific results.
Our Home Visit and Video Consultations help you maximise your ability and energy to work on what’s most important to you… living an active and independent life after surviving a stroke.
You only get one chance at living your best life after surviving a stroke, we want to help you make the most of it!
Sincerely,
FRASER SIMPSON
Neuro and Older Adult Specialist Physiotherapist
Chartered Physiotherapist
Member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy
