Stroke recovery steps at Circle Rehabilitation

Prompt initial medical care followed by dedicated rehabilitation can help stroke patients regain as much movement and function as possible. At Circle Rehabilitation, our priority is to ensure your safety first, maximise your rehabilitation and to help prevent another stroke.

Circle Rehabilitation, Birmingham is ideally placed in the West Midlands for people in Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Stoke, Shrewsbury, Worcester and beyond. We also see people who travel from across the UK.

You don’t need to be local to benefit from our state-of-the-art recovery centre. We offer residential facilities, so we are poised to help patients from across the UK.

Our rehabilitation programmes are medically-led - your care and rehabilitation is overseen by one of our specialist rehabilitation consultants and physicians.

A stroke happens when blood is cut off to part of your brain. Depending on the area(s) of your brain affected, you may experience various physical and mental challenges.

Physical challenges

• Difficulty with movement: It is common for stroke patients to experience varying difficulty with movement. This can be caused by muscle weakness or by contraction/spasm of muscles and can vary in severity and scope
• Difficulty with balance: Your ability to balance involves a number of the systems in your body working together. A stroke has the potential to cause dysfunction in the ability of these systems to coordinate with one another
• Difficulty with swallowing: In strokes where the brain stem is affected, a loss in swallowing function is common. Cerebral strokes can also result in swallowing difficulties

Mental challenges

This is also referred to as cognitive deficits; stroke patients can experience a decline in their ability to solve problems, to communicate, to remember and to understand their surroundings. A stroke affects the brain, and the nature of where the stroke has caused trauma or damage to the brain determines the extent and type of any cognitive deficits.

The aim of stroke recovery is to optimise your ability to carry out everyday tasks and to regain as much independence as possible. We help you to do this safely, and with the risk of another stroke reduced.

Physical benefits

Being able to move and function safely is a significant benefit, and our dedicated healthcare team work closely with you and your family to facilitate that.

Mental (cognitive) benefits

The aim of cognitive therapy is to help you to return to the highest level of functioning possible (this level will vary for each individual) and to meet your individual, specific goals.

Stroke recovery is a process and can vary in length depending on the individual and the severity of the damage caused by the stroke. We expect you to see improvements. We will work closely with you and your family through all the stages of your recovery.

Steps to physical recovery from stroke

• Physiotherapy: Our physical therapists will assess your ability to move and balance, as well as how well you are able to transfer (for example, moving from a chair to a standing position). They will then create a care plan based on your individual needs, which will show how best you can be looked after while at Circle and will include a rehabilitation programme based on your rehabilitation needs. Physical therapy may involve exercise, sensory work and massage to help strengthen and maintain function and flexibility in your muscles
• Occupational Therapy: Our occupational therapists will help develop your ability to perform daily activities and tasks and help you to regain as much independence as possible. As you near discharge, they are able to visit your home with you to help make the home environment as safe as possible and ensure a smooth transition home
• Speech and Language Therapy: Regaining the ability to communicate effectively can be a huge practical and emotional relief, and our therapists will work closely with you to ensure as much improvement as possible in your language, speech and swallowing ability

Steps to mental (cognitive) recovery

Depending on the cognitive challenges you have, you may be shown specific support strategies to help you manage with certain limitations. This may be things like starting to keep a diary in order to help with memory issues or learning new habits to compensate for specific weaknesses caused by your stroke.

Recovering from a stroke is a process, and this can often take time. Sometimes, you may not be able to see your own progress, but the Circle team will be there to help guide your understanding of the steps required to meet your goals, to encourage you as you progress towards them and to celebrate with you in every little win.

• Psychology: Many people who experience a stroke find that they are anxious or low in mood. Talking to our psychologists can be hugely beneficial to help come to terms with what has happened and hot you can take positive steps for the future

Everything we do – whether with our state-of-the-art equipment and technology or through focused individual time with one of our physiotherapists – is directed to giving you back your independence as fully and as quickly as possible.

If you are struggling to regain your independence or confidence after a stroke, why not seek help from the very best specialists, in the very finest purpose-built rehabilitation centre and with the very best possible care?