No, it's not the Tasmanian version of the CIA. It's the abbreviated medical terminology for a mini-stroke. My 40-year-old son Ben suffered one just before 0600 on Friday, a fact, btw, of which he saw fit to inform me, in customary dead-pan style, only a few hours ago. Didn't want me to worry, apparently ....
Indeed, it seems that the incident itself lasted only about ten minutes. As Ben stepped out of the shower he felt a loss of sensation in the left arm and leg, and a loss of speech. Being close to a major hospital, paramedics turned up within five minutes - actually two crews, at shift-change time the dispatcher, taking no chances, having sent both finishing and starting crews. This was much to the delight of the house puppy, who had four new friends to greet, and no doubt caused much sly twitching of curtains in the quiet cul-de-sac. By the time of the medics' admirably swift arrival, Ben had substantially recovered already. After a morning's hospitalisation and some tests, he was given minimal medication, told to rest and then sent on his way.
Looking at the list of what may increase the risk of a t.i.a. (incidentally, hearing that a family member has had a t.i.a. is not on the list), I am rather at a loss to know what (amateur) advice to give for the future, and would therefore much appreciate any guidance that Lifers may be able to offer from their own or others' experience.
Please bear in mind when commenting that both my sons are often on here. Ben is Er..Be..Ab..Pl..Wo..Wo..Ch, which as any transport-savvy forum will know is short for Erith Belvedere Abbey Wood Plumstead Woolwich Arsenal Woolwich Dockyard Charlton, and Chris is Zinedine Bagheri, a username which suggests a long evening's exposure to fluids of a strongly alcoholic nature.
Many thanks in advance.
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He recovered fully and has had no issues since, the mini-stroke was around 4 years ago.
FWIW, the wife of a colleague at work had something similar a few months ago - she also has a memory blackout of about a week before the event - but she has made a full recovery with no other after effects.
There was a feature on radio 4 saying that there is a much higher corrolation between TIA and a major stroke than previously thought.
The Doc on the radio said make sure it gets follow up with a full check asap.
@Er_Be_Ab_Pl_Wo_Wo_Ch I'm really sorry to hear this mate, hope you are ok. Look after yourself pal
Ray
The ex fully recovered and ran off with a woman half his age. As far as I know he hasn't had any more problems but I really hope his knob's fallen off.
Best wishes to Ben.
Many, many thanks for your helpful and supportive remarks, my good friends. Ben is planning to go to the office this week, but "only" for a mere 35 hours. He'll certainly be taking things a bit steadier
And, dear @Arsenetatters, having met you recently I can only think that your late un-lamented was having sanity issues also ....
One year on she's got little use of her left arm & hand and can just about get round her house, albeit with the use of a stick. Our family between us make sure, someone is with her most of the time, although she doesn't need carers any longer (according to her). Can't see matters ever changing for the better.
There's load of info available and the stroke association are very willing, although if you know what you're doing, we didn't have much need for them. All the best to all of you.
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/transient-ischaemic-attack/Pages/introduction.aspx
Best of luck with your recovery
18-20 months ago I had a Tia followed by a Heart attack followed by a further Tia all within 72hrs.
I am very lucky to be here.
Although I lost consciousness on both Tia my life was saved by the Docs and Medical staff in Medway Hosp.
I was left with very slight weakness in my left hand side not that it could be noticed by others.
Long term I have suffered no other ill affects bar maybe a few concerns and worries it could happen again.
I suffer from ill health regarding the heart anyway.
There is a Stroke aftercare team in Hospitals and most Doctors offer full support and should be inviting him in for a follow up appointment regarding his discharge.
Should this not happen then as a precautionary measure I suggest that he makes an appointment himself.
I wish him well for the future.
Once again, thanks for the good advice and encouragement.
Rest peaceful in the knowledge that he chose by far the most expensive option.
Stress is a very common cause which in turn makes the Blood Pressure rise. Life style doesn't help and would need changing (normally).
Normally a referral would be made to a Stroke Unit for scans etc which would be arranged by your GP
What astonished me was the speed of the medical help. Ms Er_Be_Ab_Pl_Wo_Wo_Ch dialled 999 within seconds of seeing me stagger out of the bathroom in an incomprehensible state. Paramedics must have been around me within 3 or 4 minutes.
I don't feel out of the woods just yet. One distraction that comes with this is I now find myself monitoring every little twinge or minor pain that resembles the build-up what happened on Friday; I guess this comes after any major health scare and hopefully will pass.
Although no one cause has been identified the combination of long hours, poor diet, little sleep and no exercise was always going to be unsustainable. All of that is now up for review.
Thanks again everyone.
My Mum first had a T.I.A in 1997 when she was 60, with similar symptoms to Ben, though her loss of speech lasted a few days. We were on holiday in Barbados at the time, and the health service is pretty decent there (though we took her to hospital ourselves) so it was probably a couple more hours before she was seen than Ben. That said, I'm glad to say she pretty much made a full recovery, save for the very occasional inability to pronounce certain words.
Unfortunately she had another attack in 2008, then aged 70, just before she was due to fly to England for my wedding. We were worried she wouldn't be able to fly because of the pressurisation etc, but the docs patched up and sent her on her way and she made it over. The 2nd attack seemed to leave her no 'worse' than before, with the same very occasional slight speech impediment persisting.
I'm pleased to say that she is still going strong at nearly 80, preparing to come to the UK for a little holiday later this year (in the winter!), and the only thing she takes in relation to the attacks is a daily aspirin to keep the blood thinner. She's much more worried by her dodgy hip than anything T.I.A related these days, touch wood.
Obviously everyone is different and it's important to keep an eye on things over the next few weeks, but my Mum's case and reading around the subject has shown me that without any major change in lifestyle a pretty much full recovery happens a lot, so hopefully Ben can go about his business in the same way he always did for a good few years yet.
Hope this helps.
@kkb - that is indeed very helpful. Many thanks !!
I just spoke to Ben. He is already on his way home, and will work from home for the rest of the week, a wise decision.
If you search for stroke on here there was quite a few bits from the lovely people of Charlton Life and contained TIA info.
From what was explained to us, the TIA's are little sparks firing off as a warning shot. If its blood pressure related or blockage related he will be given meds either way.
I would recommend getting a blood pressure monitor as that seems to put my dads mind at rest.
The key point is to find out what caused the TIA and make sure that the life style changes for the better so that it does not happen again.
@Er_Be_Ab_Pl_Wo_Wo_Ch hope you have a speedy recovery mate.