Stroke affects more than 900,000 people in the United States yearly, 15 percent of those who succumb minutes afterward, 25 percent recover partially, and 10 percent undergo long-term care in care facilities. Most stroke and brain injury patients have a mild or severe impairment that leaves them with long-term physical, psychological, and mental fatigue. Observe the following time-tested tips to regain psychological and physical energy after brain injury or stroke.
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Eat Healthy and Well
Nutritious food builds your immunity, strengthens your body and muscles, and improves your overall well-being. After a stroke or brain injury, you’re likely to experience weakness or paralysis on one or both sides of your body, leading to poor balance and coordination. In many instances, you might experience mild or severe tiredness a few days after the stroke, making it difficult for you to walk. You need healthy and nutritious food to repair your brain and mitochondria.
You need good food to rebuild your energy and regain your muscle and body strength. Recommended supplements such as omega-3s boost your body’s mitochondrial function, repairing your brain and boosting your brain function. They restore the blood-brain barrier breached by stroke. Omega-3-infused supplements and foods also boost energy production, enabling you to regain your energy and mobility within a shorter time frame.
Manage Stress
After a brain injury or stroke, the pains and discomforts may leave you stressed. In other words, stroke and brain injury affect your emotional and psychological well-being, leading to lower energy production. Stress and grief deprive you of your happiness and energy, making you unable to live happily. Fortunately, there are many ways to manage stress and easily regain your energy.Â
Mindfulness and meditation practices enable you to review your unconscious and correct your conscious being. It leaves you relieved, fulfilled, and relaxed. It’s also the same case with low-grade exercise, including Tai Chi and yoga, which helps you reduce stress, fatigue, and anxiety, rebuilding your energy levels. If you’ve impaired mobility, listen to mind-relieving music and keep company with people that give you emotional support.
Keep Off Toxic Substances
Toxins directly affect the functions of mitochondria, your body’s energy-generating cells. Toxins can curb or stop the efficient production of energy by mitochondria. After a stroke and brain injury, the mitochondria are at the lowest production level. Using toxic substances worsens the situation, keeping you in an emotionally and physically fatigued state.Â
Among the toxins, you must keep off from include food allergens, deodorants, herbicides, cosmetics, processed wood, pains, and more. Other time-tested stroke recovery approaches include using chemical-free cosmetics and shampoos, avoiding alcohol and smoking, eating foods grown organically, and keeping off toxic elements.
Use Cognitive Thinking Techniques
Brain injuries and strokes leave you fatigued and mentally unstable. You’ll feel exhausted and uncomfortable even in situations that aren’t too demanding. The same strategies you have always employed when completing tasks and undertaking different activities will leave you emotionally and physically drained. Overthinking or overworking yourself during such a situation can worsen the situation, making it difficult for you to concentrate and think clearly. Mostly, cognitive problems become obvious when you have got a brain injury.
Don’t be staggered if you start forgetting things quickly and making mistakes often after a brain injury or stroke. The most effective way to restore your energies and stray mentally fit in all situations after a brain injury is to utilize available thinking resources and cognitive strategies. Cognitive strategies such as setting alarms to alert you to complete certain tasks at a specific time and using a diary to schedule and organize your undertakings can go a long way in helping you stay energized. Consider using flow charts to help you in decision making and planning and checklists to track your activities.
Brain injury and stroke aren’t conditions anyone wants to suffer from, considering the many side effects and the risk of incapacitation and premature death. Staying fit after a brain injury or stroke takes time and requires a total change of lifestyle and modification of your diet. You must also stop smoking, drinking, and consuming foods that contain toxins and harmful chemicals. Planning your life and lifestyle can go a long way to fight fatigue caused by stroke and brain injury.
