Stroke is the second leading cause of death globally, just below heart attacks. This is also true in Western countries, including the United States. Strokes can happen to anyone at any time. Age and sex do not make you immune.
Your chances of stroke do, however, increase with age, and women are more likely than men to have a stroke. Blacks are more likely to have a stroke than whites and are more likely to die from a stroke.
There are other differences, as pointed out in the CDC link I gave you above. Age, sex, and race, however, are fixed and can’t be changed. These can be complex issues in and of themselves, but they are “givens.”
NOTE: I realize that there are sex change treatments available, including hormonal treatments and surgeries. There is not much long-term information available on these procedures, and their physical and psychological impacts remain to be seen. I am neutral on this subject but advise people to proceed with extreme caution. In my writings, I will use “sex” to designate the difference between a man and a woman.
Stroke Types:
There are two main types of stroke: ischemic and hemorrhagic.
Ischemic Stroke (left side of illustration):
This is the most common type of stroke (almost 90% of strokes are ischemic). It can happen anywhere in the brain and is caused by a blockage in an artery serving any particular area or multiple areas of the brain.
Blockage can mean a buildup of plaque that eventually squeezes or pinches off adequate blood flow to the tissues in the brain served by the strangled artery. This same type of stroke can also be caused by a blood clot that lodges in an area partially blocked by buildup.
Arterial plaque buildup can also cause partial or intermittent strokes called a transient ischemic attack (TIA), which is a warning sign of inadequate blood flow. TIAs are a definite reason to see your doctor ASAP. later, I will give you the symptoms of a TIA, which can be vague and difficult to identify.
Causes of Ischemic Strokes:
- Plaque buildup inside arteries reduces the effective inside diameter of the artery, slowing down or partially stopping blood flow through the artery. Plaques do not typically build up in veins.
- Blood clots from other areas of the body get stuck in the narrowed areas of cerebral arteries blocking blood flow.
- Fragments of plaques breaking loose and forming clots or otherwise blocking blood flow.
- Uncontrolled high blood pressure.
Hemorrhagic Stroke (right side of illustration):
This is where a blood vessel – typically an artery – starts leaking. Not only does blood flow to critical areas of the brain slow down or stop, but clots can form in the artery, and pressure can build in the area around the aneurysm (leak).
This type of stroke accounts for about 10% of strokes and is called a hemorrhagic stroke.
Causes of Hemorrhagic Strokes:
- Physical trauma to the head jarring brain matter and tearing arteries or veins.
- Physical damage to the inside of artery walls allowing leak-through or bursting.
- Congenital defects in the brain’s circulatory system.
- Uncontrolled high blood pressure.
Think You or Someone is Having a Stroke, Think F.A.S.T.
Face – Ask the person to smile. See if there’s a droop on one or both sides of their face.
Arm – A stroke victim often has muscle weakness on one side. Ask them to raise both of their arms at shoulder height. If one arm stays higher while the other one droops downward. This is a warning sign.
Speak – Strokes often cause speaking difficulty. Slurred speech and trouble verbalizing are both warning signs.
Time – If you see or have any one of these warning signs yourself, call 911. Do not wait to see if these things go away or get better – they might, but don’t take a chance – Do not try to drive someone to an emergency room, and certainly not yourself. Paramedics will begin prepping stroke victims on the way to the closest emergency stroke center. This is a critical time – call 911, and let the professionals take over.
When you’re waiting for the paramedics, make sure the victim is accessible. Unlock doors and clear away obstructions – help the paramedics get easy access. Try not to panic, and have things in order. Paramedics will be there as quickly as possible, don’t try to help them unless they ask – stay out of their way.
Time is everything.
Learn More About Strokes:
I have given you a brief rundown on strokes and told you what to do in case of an emergency. There is, however, lots more detail to learn than I can go into here. So for those of you wanting more information, here is an excellent source.
Preventing Strokes:
There are several things you can do to prevent strokes: Here they are:
Stop Smoking:
And stop using all tobacco products. Do I really have to say this, OMY? Just stop doing it.
Stop Using Street Drugs, Including Smoking Pot:
Again, do I really need to say this? Lots of things can be in street drugs, and some of them can be fatal. Hidden drugs can raise your heart rate, screw with your heart rhythms, and raise your blood pressure to artery-popping levels. Just stop doing this.
Brothers and sisters, it’s stupid. Think about it, as of this writing, 100,000 are dead from fentanyl poisoning. The dead ones didn’t get this from a pharmacy; it came from the streets.
Monitor Your Blood Pressure:
Measure your resting blood pressure here. If your blood pressure is high, see your doctor and get it adjusted to a “normal” level. High blood pressure is ubiquitous and doesn’t have any symptoms. No red light comes on, and no buzzer goes off; it just hangs in there and destroys your arteries from the inside out – laying the seeds for a stroke.
If your blood pressure is high, get it under control and take your meds – high blood pressure is a major, and silent, health problem.
Watch Your Weight:
If you are overweight according to the BMI scale, lose weight and get in the normal zone. If you’re overweight or obese, you didn’t get there overnight, and you won’t get back to normal overnight either. Get on a plan to lose weight slowly and steadily.
Here’s my position on weight loss. Just stick with it, don’t give up. You can win this one.
Control Your Blood Sugar:
If you’re a type II diabetic, you are likely overweight and are on medication. First, stay with your meds, but second, don’t accept being overweight – fight it- don’t give up. You can win. Remember, when it comes to weight loss, slow and steady wins the race.
Control Your Cholesterol:
OK, I’ll admit there are a lot of controversies here, and not all doctors agree on the role of cholesterol in atherosclerosis and plugged arteries. That said, why take a chance? The solution is most often taking a pill once a day – so until something better comes along that’s what I do about my blood lipids.
For another point of view on atherosclerosis, see this book. The writer has a different view on heart disease and the genesis of atherosclerosis. It’s interesting, fascinating, and well worth your time.
A Final Word About TIA:
Transient Ischemic Attacks TIAs are also known as mini-strokes. In fact, they have similar symptoms to strokes. They are not, however, a condition as much as they are a warning, an ominous wring.
They can come and go, and trick you into thinking you’re OK.
The truth is that patients with TIAs are at increased risk of having a stroke within the following several weeks. Fifteen percent of stroke victims experience TIAs prior to their stroke.
Finally:
Strokes are common and life-threatening. They can happen to anyone at any time. They are one of the top killers worldwide, and they disable as well as kill. High blood pressure control is not optional, nor is smoking and using illegal drugs.
Healthy eating habits and weight maintenance are important as well. You can work on these, and you can win – just keep plugging away.
Always follow your doctor’s advice and take your medications as directed. High blood pressure, high blood sugar, and screwy blood lipid levels are all silent killers, and they’re all around us.
Get checked out, and take action. Be safe, don’t be sorry.
OMY1
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