Blood Clots/Stroke - They Now Have a Fourth Indicator, the Tongue

STROKE IDENTIFICATION

During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics). She said she had 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 instread.

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

STROKE: Remember the 1st Three Letters ... S.T.R.

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 and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently)
       (i.e. It is sunny out today)

• R* Ask them to RAISE BOTH ARMS

New sign of a Stroke --- Stick out the Tongue

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

If they have trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call the emergency number immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.