Weight: Gain & Loss

It is now seven weeks since I joined a slimming club and during this time I have managed a weight loss of 9.5lbs.  Each week I have managed to lose a little weight and now I am noticing the difference, especially how my clothes are fitting!
I was spurred on to join a class because I knew that a group situation would prove to be valuable. I joined primarily when I was on the verge of increasing to another dress size, having already increased by one size since my Stroke.

I eat very well and do not "starve" myself or go hungry: I have learnt how to balance food and ways to optimise. Subtle changes can have tremendous results and if there is a "blip" one week then not to  be despondent.
Breakfast usually consists of cereals with fruit, (raspberries and blueberries), or a bowl of fresh fruit or wholemeal toast.
Lunch can be a sandwich or jacket potato with filling.
Dinner/Tea is fresh meat/fish with plenty of vegetables.
It doesn't feel like dieting when you can eat unlimited fish/meat/poultry/fruit and eggs, however getting the balance is key and I have to be mindful to have foods that are high in calcium and fibre as well.
Occasionally I will menu plan, but I have found that it is a good idea to write out a list when we go shopping - and not to deviate!

During the first couple of weeks I kept a food diary which initially helped me until it became routine.
This would show at a glance what foods and combinations that I had been eating and also show me the initial weeks weight losses. More importantly - was it working, had I got it right?
I also charted my exercise, which differs weekly according to my stamina and how able I am. I can walk with the use of a stick, however, this can cause ankle, knee and neck pain. Some days I can have difficulty in walking up and downstairs and on days like this I have learnt not to "beat myself up" but just accept that on the following day I will probably be better.

Sharing recipes and information with group members is a very useful and free tool. I now feel healthier and I am sure that not carrying the increased weight can only be beneficial.

Stem Cell Rresearch

Stroke patients see signs of recovery in stem-cell trial

By Pallab Ghosh Science correspondent, BBC News

Trial patients will get progressively higher doses of stem cells

Continue reading the main story

Related Stories

• Stem cells used in stroke trial
• Foetal cells 'to treat strokes'
• Q&A: Stem cells

Five seriously disabled stroke patients have shown small signs of recovery following the injection of stem cells into their brain.

Prof Keith Muir, of Glasgow University, who is treating them, says he is "surprised" by the mild to moderate improvements in the five patients.
He stresses it is too soon to tell whether the effect is due to the treatment they are receiving.
The results will be presented at the European Stroke Conference in London.
Complete paralysis BBC News has had the first exclusive interview with one of the patients involved.
They are taking part in a small clinical trial involving nine patients in their 60s, 70s and 80s at Glasgow's Southern General Hospital to assess the safety of the procedure which involves injecting stem cells into the damaged brain part.
It is one of the first trials in the world to test the use of stem cells in patients.
Results to be presented on Tuesday show that there have been no adverse effects on the patients so far and there have been improvements to more than half participating in the trial.
However, at this stage it is not possible to say whether the improvements are due to the close medical attention the patients are receiving. It is well documented that the feeling of wellbeing resulting from such attention, known as the placebo effect, can have a positive effect on people's health.

But it is thought that stroke patients do not recover after the first six months of their stroke. All the patients involved in the trial had their strokes between six months and five years before they received the treatment.

The recovery of any one of them - let alone five - was not expected, according to Prof Muir, who is in charge of the trial.
"It seems odd that it should all just be chance and a placebo effect," he told BBC News. "We are seeing things that are interesting and somewhat surprising.
"We've seen people who now have the ability to move their fingers where they have had several years of complete paralysis," Prof Muir said.
"We have seen some people that have been able to walk around their house whereas previously they had been dependent on assistance and we have had improvements that have enabled people to recognise what is happening around them."
'Temporary change' These improvements have made it easier for the patients to do day-to-day tasks such as dressing themselves, walking and being more independent.
"My expectation had been that we would see very little change and if we did see change it would be a relatively short-lived temporary change. (But) we have seen changes that have been maintained over time," Prof Muir said.
Among the patients to have shown improvements is 80-year-old Frank Marsh, who had a stroke five years ago.

Frank and Claire Marsh on the "terrific small improvement" he has made

Prior to his attack Mr Marsh, a former teacher, was fit and active: a member of the Glasgow Phoenix Choir and a keen piano player. The stroke left him with poor strength and co-ordination in his left hand and poor balance.
He needs a walking stick to help him move around the house and he can no longer play the piano.
After the injection of stem cells into the damaged area of his brain, his balance and mobility improved as did his hand strength. He can now also tie up his shoe laces.
Mr Marsh said he believed the operation had gradually led to improvements.
"I can now grip things that I couldn't grip before, like the hand rails at the swimming baths," he said.
Phase two trial His wife, Clare, also a teacher, said that the small improvements had made him more independent. "He had reached a plateau and wasn't really improving (after his stroke). But following the operation he is able to do things he couldn't do before, such as make coffee, dressing and holding on to things."

Mr Marsh added that he hoped the improvements would continue: "I'd like to get back to my piano. I'd like to walk a bit steadier and further."

However, Mrs Marsh felt that there would be no further progress for her husband, but hoped that others might benefit from the clinical trial that he is participating in.
"The great potential is what it is going to do for the future," she said. "I told Frank at the beginning that this may not help you, but it might help your grandson."
Mrs Marsh is right in that even if it is proved that the stem-cell treatment really works it will be a long time before any treatment might be widely available.
The results so far pave the way for a so-called phase two trial later this year which will be desirable to determine whether any improvement is due to the treatment.
If the phase two trial does show that the stem-cell treatment is the cause of the improvements, it could still take many years before it becomes widely available. Larger phase three trials will be needed to assess who the treatment is most suitable for and at what stage it might be most effective.
Ethical approval Commenting on the research, Dr Clare Walton of the Stroke Association said: "The use of stem cells is a promising technique which could help to reverse some of the disabling effects of stroke. We are very excited about this trial; however, we are currently at the beginning of a very long road and significant further development is needed before stem cell therapy can be regarded as a possible treatment."
The stem cells were created 10 years ago from one sample of nerve tissue taken from a foetus. The company that produces the stem cells, Reneuron, is able to manufacture as many stem cells as it needs from that original sample.
It is because a foetal tissue sample was involved in the development of the treatment that it has its critics.
Among them is anti-abortion campaigner Lord Alton. "The bottom line is surely that the true donor (the foetus) could not possibly have given consent and that, of course, raises significant ethical considerations," he said.
Reneuron says the trial - which it funded - has ethical approval from the medicine's regulator. It added that one tissue sample was used in development 10 years ago and that foetal material has not been used since.

To read the whole story follow the link:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22646103

Last week: Action on Stroke Month - May 2013 - Images

Simple things . . .

After a hectic couple of weeks it is now time to slow down and rest wherever possible.

Whilst our extended family were staying with us we visited:
Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Saltaire & Whitby: links attached
http://www.ysp.co.uk/page/visit-ysp/tc        http://www.saltairevillage.info/
 http://www.whitby.co.uk/whereiswhitby.html

It was a very full schedule as we showed our cousin some places of interest on the limited time that she stayed with us. The weather remained good and this helped enormously.
On the day that we returned Gill to Lancashire it was my mother-in-law's 96th birthday and so we all went out to celebrate at a local Italian restaurant, this meant a very long day with a 110 miles round trip.  The following Sunday there was a family christening in Lancashire- again another long day, but so good to be part of all the celebrations. 
The days that followed these events left me extremely tired and I visited the Doctor to make sure that everything was ok. - I had the "whizzy" head and found that I couldn't "switch off" and at times felt light-headed. After a good examination where my blood pressure was checked and other routine checks were also made I was prescribed medication for a kind of vertigo. I am now more relaxed, but know that I have to take things steady for a week or two.
During this time my friends have taken me out for lunch to help me to relax. Three different friends and on three separate occasions, but on each occasion to the same place!
It is a difficult balance, as I want to be active to feel useful around the house but on the other hand I must take it steady. Over the last couple of weeks I kept going to bed thinking of all the jobs that I wanted to do and achieve, and so with this in mind I devised a table. This has helped a great deal and now I feel more relaxed and less pressurised, ( which I have brought upon myself).
I will edit as necessary and the columns can be set as desired: morning and afternoon for example.

SHIRLEY

Fri. 24th May	Metro Centre
Sat 25th May	Clothes away
Sun 26th	Rawtenstall
Mon 27th (B.H.)	Iron
Tues 28th	Loft
Weds 29th	Collect ‘script
Thurs 30th	Collect Debs
Fri 31st May	Dentist 12.35
Sat 1st June
Sun 2nd	H.C.
Mon 3rd
Tues 4th
Weds 5th
Thurs 6th
Fri 7th
Sat 8th	BED RACE
Sun 9th	WOODCROFT
Mon 10th
Tues 11th	M&S
Weds 12th	Toilet/Bath’m + Floors
Thurs 13th	Sarah 11.15

 Inbetween all of this I still continue to set myself personal goals and I have achieved the next two:
I can now clean my teeth using my right hand and can also put my deodorant on in this way. So, after almost four years, I am still maintaining progress and this I feel that this is by setting myself realistic targets. I practice, practice and practice until it slowly becomes second nature.
My next one is to try and eat with my right hand again. One of my sons has bought me a "Spork": knife/fork and spoon combined. At the moment this is proving to be a challenge, but I can manage the spoon!

 The weather continues to play its part also. The cold and damp is no good for recovery as it causes the tendons in my arm to tense and shorten and in turn makes my fingers start to curl again. Hopefully, as we move towards summer, this will cease to be.

I continue with my routine medication and still use the Dosset Box that the hospital supplied. I was shown how to use it before my discharge. It has now a matter of routine as I load up the daily compartments with regular medication on a weekly basis.
It is also very useful when we go on holiday.

 In six weeks time it will be the fourth aniversary of my Stroke.
I still continue to remain focussed and "live in the knowledge that I am going to recover".
Recovery is a marathon not a sprint.
During this time my friends have played their part and continue to do so. I owe so much to them and to my family.

Time is Brain

I have been "off air" recently as I have been having a very busy time:
Our cousin from Canada has been visiting and our immediate family have been to stay with us - a good family re-union. -- More of this to follow on my next posting.

In the meantime, here are two articles/videos to watch as I try to continue promoting
Stroke Awareness Month. 

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/13/my-stroke-of-luck/?nl=health&emc=edit_hh_20130514 

Jill Bolte Taylor got a research opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: She had a massive stroke, and watched as her brain functions -- motion, speech, self-awareness -- shut down one by one. An astonishing story.

Brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor studied her own stroke as it happened -- and has become a powerful voice for brain recovery.
http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html?source=facebook#.UZOyWSqT4-E.facebook
 

Let's Take Action on Stroke: May 2013

 Follow the link to see how you can be involved to spread the word about "Action on Stroke"

http://twibbon.com/support/action-on-stroke-month-2