If someone you love has had a stroke – a parent, partner, or sibling, it can turn their life, and yours, upside down. The damage that has been done can have a massive impact on the sufferer, as well as on the rest of the family. However, it’s important to understand that there is life after stroke.
With the right help and support, you can help your relative to live a happy and healthy life. Their stroke doesn’t have to affect their independence – it might take time for them to get back on their feet, but they’ll get there.
To help you provide your loved one with the support they need while helping them to be more independent, take note of these tips:
Get them the best therapy
Once your relative has come out of the hospital, they will need to undergo speech therapy. They may also need physical therapy to help improve their walking, and range of motion.
If you want to help your loved one regain their independence as quickly as possible, it’s important that they get the best help. Believe it or not, the type of therapy that you relative has will hugely impact their recovery. So it’s a good idea to go with the best therapist that you can afford.
Modify their home
Even if they have moved in with you for a while, it’s a good idea to start thinking about how their home can be adapted. By modifying your relative’s home, you can help to give them their independence back more quickly.
If they struggle with the stairs, consider getting a stair lift installed and a step lift for getting in the front door. These alterations might be expensive, but if they help aid your loved one’s recovery, they’re worth the cost.
Make the bathroom as safe as possible by installing a grab bar in the shower, as well as on the bath. You could also have a shower seat installed so that they can sit down while taking a shower.
Take over the cooking
If your loved one won’t be capable of cooking when they return home, it’s important that you take over. You can hire a company to deliver homemade meals to them each day, or you can cook their food yourself.
If you decide to make the food yourself, cook up large batches of healthy meals and portion them up. These can then be stored in your relative’s freezer, and microwaved as and when they need them. At least by doing this, your loved one then has a bit more independence, instead of having to rely on your to do every last thing for them.
Strokes can be devastating, especially when someone that you care about has lost their independence. Luckily, however, there are plenty of simple things that you can do to help give them their life back. It won’t happen overnight, but in time, you can help your loved one to get back on their feet again, after suffering a stroke.
