What is stroke rehabilitation?

Stroke rehabilitation (rehab) is training and therapy to help you recover and prevent problems after a stroke. The team may help you learn new ways to do daily activities. The focus of rehab will depend on how the stroke has affected your ability to do the things you want and need to do.

Rehab may begin in the hospital. It starts as soon as you are able. You will have a team of doctors, nurses, and therapists. The team can help you in many ways. For example, the team may help you learn new ways to do daily activities such as eating, bathing, or dressing. They can teach you to prevent problems like falls or burns. Some people need help to learn how to walk or talk again. If the stroke affected your memory, you will learn ways to improve it.

You may recover the most in the first few weeks or months after your stroke. But even with rehab, you may not be able to do all the things you could before the stroke. But you can continue to get better even after the first few months.

After the hospital, you may go to a rehab facility or a nursing home for a while. Or you may go home. Wherever you go, keep working on your rehab and do a little every day.

It's going to be important for you to get the support you need. Your friends and family can help you. Involve them in your treatment. They can be part of your rehab team. Talk to others who have had a stroke, and find out how they handled ups and downs.

Your stroke rehab team will include doctors and nurses who specialize in stroke rehab, as well as other professionals. Each team member will help you in specific ways. The team may include the following professionals.

Rehab doctor

A rehab doctor is a specialist in charge of your rehab program. The doctor may also work on special problems, such as muscle cramps and spasms.

Rehab nurses

Rehab nurses can help you in many ways. They may help you learn new ways to do daily activities. For example, they can help you learn how to:

• Take care of your health, including a schedule for medicine.
• Get from your bed to a wheelchair.
• Bathe.
• Control your bowels or bladder.

Physical therapist

A stroke often takes away a person's ability to move in certain ways. A physical therapist helps you get back as much movement, balance, and coordination as possible.

Physical therapy usually includes exercises. The exercises can help you get back your ability to walk and move as much as possible. It's important to practice these exercises over and over again.

Your therapist may also help you learn to use a wheelchair or walker. And they may teach you how to use stairs safely.

Occupational therapist

An occupational therapist helps you practice daily tasks like eating, bathing, dressing, and writing. For example, they may help you learn how to:

• Prepare meals and clean your house.
• Drive your car.
• Use tools and devices that can help if you no longer have full use of both hands. For example, velcro can replace buttons on clothing.
• Get grab bars for your bathroom.
• Make your home safe if you have strength, balance, or vision problems.

Speech-language pathologist

A speech-language pathologist can help you relearn how to talk or find new ways to express yourself.

Swallowing is sometimes a problem after a stroke. This therapist can help you improve your ability to swallow.

This therapist can also help you work on reading and writing skills.

Dietitian

A dietitian can help you learn about nutrition and create a heart-healthy eating plan.

Psychologist or counselor

Emotions like fear, anxiety, anger, sadness, frustration, and grief are common after a stroke. A psychologist or counselor can help you deal with your emotions. They can also help you get treatment if you have depression.

Vocational counselor

Stroke can leave you with disabilities that make it hard to do your job. A vocational counselor can help you return to your job or find a new one. They can help you:

• Identify your current skills and prepare a new resume.
• Search for a job.
• Understand the laws that protect disabled workers.

Recreational therapist

A recreational therapist helps you return to doing things you enjoy. This may include the arts, hobbies, sports, or leisure activities.

Social worker or case manager

A social worker or case manager can help you and your caregivers arrange for the help and equipment you may need at home after you leave the rehab center.

How long you will be in a stroke rehab program depends on what kind of help you need. Rehab starts while you are still in the hospital. After you leave the hospital, you may continue treatment at a rehab center or at home.

You may recover the most in the first few weeks or months after your stroke. But you can keep getting better for years. It just may happen more slowly. And it may take a lot of time and hard work. Don't give up hope.

The best way to get better after a stroke is to start stroke rehabilitation (rehab). The goal of stroke rehab is to help you recover, prevent problems, and regain skills you may have lost or to make the most of your remaining abilities.

Stroke rehab can help you to:

• Do as well as you can and be as independent as possible.
• Learn to live with the changes to your brain and body caused by the stroke.
• Adjust to living within your home, family, and community.
• Help prevent problems like falls or a blood clot in a vein (deep vein thrombosis).

In stroke rehab, a team of health professionals works with you to regain skills you lost as the result of a stroke. Your rehab will be based on how the stroke affected you. It also is based on your general health and your ability to participate.

• Rehab starts with helping you resume daily activities. This includes eating, bathing, and dressing.
• You may learn how to use assistive devices or orthotics. These are tools that help you hold objects, open and close things, transfer weight while shifting positions, or walk. These tools may be hard to get used to. But they help you return to your daily life and everyday tasks.

A key part of rehab is taking steps to prevent a future stroke. To stay in good health, you may need to take medicines and make some lifestyle changes. Work with your rehab team to decide what type of exercise, diet, or other lifestyle choices are best for you.

Taking part in stroke rehab can help you recover, prevent problems, and learn new skills that will help you take care of yourself as much as possible. The focus of your rehab depends on how the stroke has affected your ability to do the things you want and need to do.

Your rehab team can help you in many ways. For example, the team may help you learn new ways of doing daily activities such as eating, bathing, or dressing. The team may teach you to prevent problems like falls or burns. Some people need help to learn how to walk or talk again. If the stroke affected your memory, you will learn ways to improve it.