More stroke information

What it is: Strokes occur when blood vessels are blocked and cannot carry blood, oxygen and other nutrients to the brain. Stroke types: When a clot obstructs the flow of blood to the brain, it’s called an ischemic stroke. If a blood vessel ruptures, it’s called a hemorrhagic stroke. A mini stroke, or transient ischemic attack, is caused by a temporary clot. Warning signs: face drooping such as an uneven smile, arm weakness, speech difficulty. Risk factors: Age (older than 55), heredity, race (African-Americans have a higher risk than Caucasians), gender (women have more strokes than men) and prior strokes. Taub General Hospital, Memorial Hermann Hospital, St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital and St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.)

Houston Methodist sponsors a free meeting at 6 p.m. on the first Thursday of every month at the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston..

Lindy Suarez started that group about five years ago to provide information and support to stroke patients and their caregivers. About every other month, the group hosts a guest speaker, including neurologists and dietitians, said Suarez, a licensed clinical social worker at the hospital.

Members of the group are especially keen to learn about the long-term outlook following a stroke, she said, because if someone has had one stroke, he or she is at a higher risk of having another.

Sometimes the group learns to make healthful snacks in a hands-on dem- onstration, said Suarez, who tries to make it fun. Other times, they focus on other cognitive changes, such as dementia and other memory issues.

The group started with two members, Suarez said, and now has a steady core of 15, which includes her own husband.

One night nearly three years ago, Suarez arrived home from a stroke-support meeting to find her then-47-year-old husband unable to talk and the right side of his face drooping.

Suarez called for an ambulance. It turns out that her husband had a massive stroke that left him paralyzed on the right side of his body. He can no longer read or write, but he can drive, and he has learned how to use his left hand.

He had no risk factors, said Suarez, who said the experience has forever tied her to the stroke caregiver community.

“You never think it will happen to anyone in your family,” she said. lm.sixel@chron.com twitter.com/lmsixel