A few weeks ago now, I was texted with the information that my dad had had a stroke that morning so after a few panicked phone calls I ended up in the emergency room with my dad who had indeed suffered a stroke. This was one of the scariest moments of my life. After losing my mother in 2012 to a brain bleed, the idea I could lose my dad too was too much for me.
Luckily, dad was awake and responsive, but had lost control of his right arm, leg and facial muscles. After a few hours he was given his own ward while we waited for his MRI results and he chatted with me pleasantly as best he could. I went home to my husband and cried my eyes out. Not a wink of sleep was had in our house that night.
The next day, I went in to visit him and got there at the same time as my older sister and we were shocked to find that dad was speaking gibberish. He was saying sentences of entirely the wrong words. This shocked us as he'd spoken fine the night before. We panicked, thinking that the MRI results would possibly come back with a tumour or something scary. We wouldn't find out for another two days that dad's results came back fine - it was just a stroke, no tumours or bleeds - so those two days of limbo were Hell on earth for a family that had already lost its mother.
The one thing that did come up in dad's tests was that his blood sugar was abnormally high (I think it was 17) and the normal range is somewhere between 4-7 I think, depending on if you've eaten or not. After a fasting glucose test (where you don't eat the night before and then have your bloods checked) it was determined that dad was diabetic and that it was his diabetes that caused his stroke.
That blew me away. I had no idea that diabetes and strokes were in any way connect, nor that my dad even had diabetes! I mean, I should have noticed because the amount of cakes and sweet treats in dad's house is somewhere on par with Willy Wonka's factory, but because dad had lost so much weight in recent months, I didn't think diabetes. That led to a considerable amount of research and it turns out there is a lot I don't know about the condition. I really should because dad is now the fifth member of our family to have it and so it's very possible that it is hereditary.
As with any condition, there are certain symptoms that you will be used to hearing about: drinking more water, being unusually thirsty, frequent trips to the loo, and there are also a few things that you take for granted about it. I always thought that overweight people were the ones that got diabetes or people who ate too much, but it turns out that isn't always the case. My dad lost a hell of a lot of weight after mum died and he looked healthier than ever. He seemed to be making a massive improvement to his health. But in recent months - and I'm just hearing this now from neighbours and friends - he seemed to drop even more weight and his skin took a quite unhealthy colour and he couldn't make it through the day without needing to nap. These are all symptoms of Type 2 diabetes.
This is an excerpt from the NHS website on the symptoms:
Many people have type 2 diabetes without realising. This is because symptoms don't necessarily make you feel unwell.
Symptoms of type 2 diabetes include:
peeing more than usual, particularly at night
feeling thirsty all the time
feeling very tired
losing weight without trying to
itching around your penis or vagina, or repeatedly getting thrush
cuts or wounds taking longer to heal
blurred vision
You're more at risk of developing type 2 diabetes if you:
are over 40 – or 25 for south Asian people
have a close relative with diabetes – such as a parent, brother or sister
are overweight or obese
are of south Asian, Chinese, African Caribbean or black African origin – even if you were born in the UK
Cuts taking longer to heal or losing weight? I had no idea about that and I didn't really think of blurred vision either. Now, where diabetes comes into having a stroke. I have found this from Healthline.com:
Diabetes affects the body’s ability to create insulin or use it properly. Since insulin plays an important role in pulling glucose into cells from the bloodstream, people with diabetes are often left with too much sugar in their blood. Over time, this excess sugar can contribute to the buildup of clots or fat deposits inside vessels that supply blood to the neck and brain. This process is known as atherosclerosis. If these deposits grow, they can cause a narrowing of the blood vessel wall or even a complete blockage. When blood flow to your brain stops for any reason, a stroke occurs.So in effect, by taking care of your diet, you are also lowering your risk of having other conditions such as a stroke or heart disease. It sounds like common sense now I think about it, but my brain just didn't connect the two conditions together.
My dad is on the road to recovery now, he's in the rehab ward at the hospital and is sat up and talking normally now but the road will be a very long one. Not only does he have his physiotherapy to contend with, but both him and his wife will have to follow a very strict diet specifically designed at keeping his blood sugar stable. He won't be able to eat biscuits, cakes, pies or trifles and will have to figure out new, healthier ways of quenching the sweet-tooth from now on. This is going to be hard and there's no room for complacency. We're all going to have to make those changes alongside him now if we're going to help dad get back on his feet, not to mention keep an eye on our own blood sugar levels as we are close family.
My dad is one of the lucky ones, I know that, and I am eternally grateful that he is in such good hands at the hospital. That is the reason I want to write this. If it at least makes even one person be more conscious of what they eat or get their blood levels checked, then it was worth the time writing.
Before I end, here is the link to the NHS page for strokes, there is some information here on the conditions that can cause them and also what exactly strokes are. I've found it very helpful during this time. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stroke/
Thanks for reading guys and stay well.
NX
