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This can happen at any time. You head to the park, the sun is shining, you’re talking to a friend on the phone and an older man walks by. Out of nowhere he trips and falls to the ground.
Symptoms
You go up to him to make sure he’s okay. He says nothing happened, he just tripped. For some reason you believe him, even though there’s no stone around that he could have tripped over. Everyone then goes their own way and that evening this man dies of a stroke.
You only need to know the main symptoms that can cause death in both the old and the young. If something similar happens to you, make sure to subject the person to a simple test. After all, a human life is at stake!
A sudden stroke is signaled by one or more symptoms that our body gives off before the catastrophe occurs. If you have elderly relatives in your family, make sure you read the following four signs, by which you will be able to determine whether the person will have a stroke and whether they need medical help.
Procedure
- Ask the person to smile broadly. If you can’t get them to, try saying: “Smile at that beautiful woman.” A person having a stroke cannot smile broadly or frown.
- Ask if they can say a longer, coherent sentence. It’s important that it be longer than three words. For example: I tripped over my own foot and fell, but I’m fine. A person in the pre-stroke phase is not able to clearly pronounce a longer sentence or phrase.
- Ask them to raise their hand above their head. If they are going to have a stroke in the very near future and cannot raise it, it is highly likely they are at risk — and this may be true even if they do manage to raise it.
- Ask them to stick out their tongue. Sometimes you may need to do it yourself, although the person may feel uncomfortable or embarrassed. A person affected by a stroke has a crooked tongue.
If you notice at least one of these symptoms in an elderly person, urgently call an ambulance and tell the responding doctors about the situation, they will know what to do. There are several symptoms that people notice even before their condition worsens. These symptoms include numbness of the fingers or entire limbs, dizziness, headaches, severe nausea and a sudden loss of vision in one or both eyes.
