Dad had a stroke, what to expect?

[Helbelle17]

My lovely dad had a stroke yesterday. He's usually fit and well, but recovering from a chest infection. My sister and I couldn't get hold of him yesterday, so we went to his flat and he was on the bathroom floor. No idea how long he'd been there as he can't tell us.
Our wonderful NHS are looking after him well, he's on the stroke unit and settled and comfortable. He can't use his right hand side at the moment and can't talk, and he's obviously a little bit distressed.
Just wondered what to expect in terms of recovery? Is there anything we can do for him? Would welcome anyone else's experiences.

It’s very early days. Find out whether his swallowing is affected because this tells you what he can eat or drink. If he can’t at the moment ask the nursing staff how to keep his mouth clean and moist.
Make sure he has toiletries and shaving kit of his own and slippers with a heel in so they don’t fall off.
Take in clothes for him to do physio when he is ready. Tracksuit bottoms pull up and down easily. Tops that aren’t too tight so they’re easy to get on and off.
In the early days it’s hard to tell how much someone will recover, but many people make a good recovery so stay positive. As family you should expect to be involved in meetings about his recovery, especially when it comes to him being discharged home.
( I’m a physio who works with stroke patients.)

Thank you so much for your reply. He's quite poorly with a chest infection as well, so he's on oxygen and antibiotics. Not able to talk or move his right side currently. He's seen a physio and looks a lot more comfortable now.
I'll make sure we bring those things for him. Thanks again, that's really helpful.

Depends very much on his age and in next few days how quickly his brain starts to recover
I found all rehab services very helpful but as a family we were able to work with them and progress DF further

Lots of encouragement, there might be days where he won't even want to bother with any form of rehab, give him reasons not to give up.
Plenty of comfortable clothing and personal belongings, I'm a nurse in a rehabilitation centre and the amount of people we have who don't have a stitch in their wardrobe is heartbreaking, sometimes something just as simple as a decent toothbrush and a bit of his fave shower gel - we know ourselves how much better we feel after a freshen up!
And most importantly, don't be afraid to be his voice while he's unable to speak up for himself ,you're his family and know him better than anyone, we know our job but family input is an essential part of good quality patient centered care.

I wish him a speedy and successful recovery xxx take care of yourselves too x

Thank you.
He's now in icu, on as much oxygen as they can give him, trying to get thia infection under control.
We need to get through the next few days and hop that he comes out the other side before we think about his recovery from the stroke.
Will definitely take in plenty of things from home so he has those to focus on.

I think he varies from person to person. My mum had a stroke last year, it has left her weaker but unless you knew you wouldn,t guess.

How is he getting on OP? xxx

Thank you for asking.
He's not so good. Slowly improving with the chest infection but not as quickly as they'd like. He can now lift and move his head and eyes, but not able to speak.
They've said if the chest infection doesn't improve soon, there's not a lot more they can do.

how old is he?

He's 69 and prior to this was active. Walked a lot, came to see us at least once a week, actively involved with his grandchildren.
He's been a smoker all his life though, so I don't think that's helping matters.

My dad had a stroke at age 65. I would say he 90% recovered. Memory not as sharp & balance never recovered. But lives a very full life, works about 50% FTE until recently (now age 77). He gets annoyed with all the medications he's on, though.