Regaining Independence - Part 1 (What every one needs to know)

The number one question that we are asked by stroke survivors is this..."can I do tomorrow what I did yesterday?" They are seeking desperately to regain their independence...the one thing that they lost in the instant the event occurred. We are going to look at what makes TCM Restoration and our program different.

Mind: Mindset of a survivor is particularly critical and anyone who says otherwise is deceiving themselves. Most often stroke survivors live in a "fog" as they recover. Their personal confidence is shattered and they typically react with fears of "what if". Physicians and other providers often share that what the patient recovers in the first six weeks to 6 months is all they will recover.

This makes that fear increase and can bring about depression. A new diagnosis has now been marketed in the drug arena, that of "Pseudobulbar Affect" which is often referred to as emotional incontinence, and is characterized by involuntary crying or uncontrollable episodes of crying and/or laughing, and/or other emotional displays. Typically PBA occurs secondary to a neurologic disorder or brain injury and once "diagnosed" drugs can be prescribed. Once these drugs are prescribed they come with multiple side effects and it is almost impossible to get patients off of them.

Neurologic disorders (such as stroke) or brain injury patients have that emotional switch affected but it can be restored with TCM. Inappropriate crying and/or laughter is indicative of the damage that has been done but the medication route does nothing to heal it. Drugs only cause temporary effects that are only maintained with continued use and whose use also brings about increasing side effects.

As we've seen, individuals who have suffered a neurologic disorder (stroke) or brain injury the fog can and is removed through TCM. TCM Restoration is very different in our acknowledgement and dealing with this "fog". We work together with the TCM physicians to fix the problems permanently using acupuncture to reconnect pathways and open data streams. We constantly assess and work with clients to maintain and increase focus, build and maintain a positive attitude, and teach and educate the client and their family to the challenges that they face and need to overcome.

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