Maintaining a proper check and balance on your health is always the right thing to do. You need to be extra careful in all matters related to your wellness. God forbid, if any part of your body starts to ache all of a sudden or you feel numbness or weakness, you should consult your doctor right away to make sure these are not the symptoms of a stroke.
Wondering how to know if someone is having a stroke?
To help you find the answers you’re looking for, we have come up with this article. Here we will discuss some of the most common symptoms of a stroke and ways to help a person going through such a medical emergency.
But, first of all, let’s try to understand what a stroke actually is by taking a look at its definition.
What is a stroke?
A stroke is a type of health condition that occurs when any part of your brain stops getting proper blood supply. This ultimately prevents oxygen and other important nutrients from getting to your brain tissues. As a result of this, brain cells could die within minutes.
A stroke could become a fatal medical emergency, if not cured in time. This is why prompt treatment is extremely crucial. The sooner, the better. Early actions could prevent the brain and heart from suffering any major damage, significantly reducing the chances of any serious health problems and other related complications.
Major causes of a stroke
According to many different medical surveys, the following are the four major factors that cause a person to suffer from a stroke.
- High blood pressure or hypertension, as doctors may call it.
- Tobacco consumption. Smoking or chewing it significantly raises your chances of having a stroke.
- Heart disease, which could evidently be the most obvious cause. There may be many different types of health conditions in this regard, such as defective heart valves and atrial fibrillation. Also, let’s not forget about the irregular heartbeat, which mostly causes strokes among elderly people.
- Diabetes is also one of the major causes of a stroke that you should know about.
Signs of stroke you should look out for
The condition of a stroke may develop in your body gradually. Here are some of the most common warning signs you need to be aware of:
- You would start feeling numbness or weakness, usually on either side of your body. The body parts that could get affected during a stroke include your arm, leg or face.
- To face trouble or confusion while understanding even the simplest of actions and statements made by other people
- Problem in speech
- Unable to see or focus with one or both eyes
- Difficulty in walking or maintaining balance
- Dizziness and nausea are also among the most common signs of a stroke.
- Severe headaches are caused without any specific reason.
If any of the aforementioned symptoms match your health condition, you should call 911 or any other related emergency number even if you are not 100% sure that you’re having a stroke. It is important to take necessary precautions before things get worse.
How can you tell if someone is having a stroke? (Common Symptoms in Men and Women)
If you’re still wondering how to know if someone is having a stroke, then the aforementioned signs and symptoms of a stroke are common in both men and women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If anyone is having all of these symptoms, they might need medical help as soon as possible.
What to do if someone is having a stroke?
According to a report by the American Heart Association, every 40 seconds a stroke attacks a victim. There is no particular age limit, this medical emergency can happen to anyone, regardless of their age. It is important to recognize the signs and take prompt action. Your alertness could make the difference between life and death for people who are close to you.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends you to act F.A.S.T and do the following things:
F—Face: Ask the person to smile or make a grinning face. Do you find any anomaly with one side of the face?
A—Arms: Now ask the affected person to raise both arms high in the air. Do you see one arm drifting downward?
S—Speech: Do a little speech therapy. Ask the person who might potentially be suffering from a stroke to repeat a simple phrase multiple times. Are you finding their voice slurred or strange?
T—Time: If you come across any of these signs or symptoms, call for help immediately.
Lifesaving Tip: Instead of taking the patient yourself to the hospital, you should call an ambulance. In this way, the paramedic staff in the ambulance could start providing life-saving treatment to the stroke victim on the way to the hospital.
So, how to know if someone is having a stroke? We hope this and all other related questions have been answered in the information shared above. We have discussed almost all the major symptoms and causes of a stroke and now it will be easier for you to identify such a medical emergency and take necessary actions fast to help the affected person.
