Rebuilding lives touched by strokes

A stroke doesn’t have to mean the end of one’s life. With Nasam’s help, it can be a new beginning.

A STROKE. How many of us know what it is?

I certainly didn’t know much about it until a few weeks ago, when I spoke to National Stroke Association of Malaysia (Nasam) founder Janet Yeo. I knew the broad strokes of what happens – that a stroke happens when brain cells die due to an interruption in the blood nourishing our body’s nerve centre.

However, I have since learned several surprising facts, aside from the fact that Oct 29 is World Stroke Day. For one, strokes are the third largest cause of deaths in Malaysia after heart diseases and cancer, and strokes are the single most common cause of severe disabilities in Malaysia.

We have to be mindful of what a stroke is and how we can recover from one because we can recover, as long as we get the right post-stroke support, said Yeo, explaining the work Nasam does at its nine centres nationwide.

“There is life after a stroke despite the damage, because you can still live your life and enjoy your life even though you are a wheelchair user,” said Yeo.

She added that a big goal behind the services offered at Nasam’s centres is to get stroke survivors to live their lives fully instead of giving up because they’ve survived a stroke.

“I want to discourage stroke survivors from thinking that they have to wait until they get better before they go out and live their lives. I tell them that it takes a long time to recover from a stroke. I had a stroke 28 years ago and I am still recovering.

“The moment I came home from the hospital, my husband said that I’m going out for dinner, to the market and I am going back to the office. I lived my life. I went through it and now I am preaching what I practised.

“I could have been bedridden or a wheelchair user as my stroke was that severe, but my husband believed that I would rise to the challenge if he challenged me. I want stroke survivors to challenge themselves and believe in themselves,” said Yeo.

She said that a stroke can be seen as a challenge for a person to overcome by reinventing themselves.

“I tell stroke survivors to approach every day with a new outlook, that they’re going to work and not laze around in bed. Get ready, shower, dress well and treat coming to Nasam as if they’re coming to work for two hours.

“And what is the purpose of the work? To rebuild yourself. It is a ‘ Yes, I can!’ mindset that is aimed at lifting the spirit,” said Yeo.

She added that Nasam helps people develop new talents they never knew they had.

“We have been blessed with a lot of talent, so let’s move on to the next talent. We get people to see that a stroke is a turning point and to see the positive points about it – that they’re making new friends and discovering talents they never knew they had,” said Yeo, who added that Nasam helps about 500 people every day.

I asked her how people can seek Nasam’s help if they or someone they know has been affected by a stroke.

“An appointment has to be made, at any one of the centres. When the stroke survivor comes in, he will be given an introduction to Nasam and what we do, and the centre’s chief physiotherapist will assess him and prescribe the programme best suited to him, depending on his age and the severity of the stroke,” said Yeo.

She also gave advice on how to know if someone is having a stroke.

“First look at the face; the face will be a little distorted. Then ask the person to raise his arms. Strokes always affect one side, so an arm will keep falling down. Then listen to his speech and ask him to smile. If the speech is slurred and he has difficulty smiling, it is time to call the hospital. And this is what I always urge people – go straight to the hospital, don’t go to a clinic. Go to the emergency ward,” said Yeo.

She also said that Nasam – contactable via email at info@nasam.org – welcomes the support of the public.

“Participate in our activities. If we’re having a Stroke Games, come and cheer us on. When we have a public forum, come and listen. Additionally, we are starting to recruit new volunteers as we have arts, craft and music in our holistic programme. These are all the programmes we have. Teach them how to do handicraft, teach them how to do gardening. Be a volunteer,” she said.

Considering that about 52,000 Malaysians are affected by strokes annually, I’d like to think we all have a reason to give Nasam our support.

Senior writer Tan Yi Liang’s In Your Face aims to prove that people have more positive power in their hands than they realise, and to challenge them. He can be reached at tanyl@thestar.com.my.