Think F.A.S.T, act faster!

This morning I had to go to the hospital for some routine blood work at the lab. While I was checking in, there was a sign on the counter to remind people of the F.A.S.T. acronym about strokes. Immediately, I knew what I should write about for this week’s AAS column. Following is a very personal F.A.S.T. column that I wrote a decade ago in February, 2009; but it is just as timely today. Our family was gathered to celebrate my father-in-law’s 89th birthday. We had a marvelous multi-course dinner at the Hilton Hotel and the chef really had it together. Everyone was having a wonderful time when suddenly, in the middle of our celebration, he was speechless; not because of the celebration, but because something was happening to him………that something was a stroke! If we hadn’t acted F.A.S.T., I’m confident there wouldn’t have been a 90th birthday party. Because we recognized the symptoms immediately and took F.A.S.T. action by calling 911, the EMT’s arrived in less than five minutes and he was on his way to the hospital where he could get the care he needed to save his life. How F.A.S.T. is fast enough? F.A.S.T. is an acronym from the National Stroke Association to help us remember the classical symptoms of stroke and what to do. If you think someone may be having a stroke, do this simple test: Act fast F.A.S.T. Face-ask the person to smile. Does one side of the face droop? Arms-ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward? Speech-ask the person to repeat a simple sentence. Are the words slurred? Can he/she repeat the sentence correctly? Time-if the person shows any of these symptoms, time is important. Call 911 or get to the hospital fast. Brain cells are dying. Seniors are Especially at Risk Each year, according to the National Institute of Health, there are more than 700,000 new strokes in the United States. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the country, after heart disease and cancer. And stroke causes more serious long-term disabilities than any other disease. Nearly three-quarters of all strokes occur in people over the age of 65. And the risk of having a stroke more than doubles each decade after the age of 55. 911 is not enough Once a stroke occurs, it’s important to find out why and what corrective action can and should be taken. In our case it was carotid artery surgery. This may seem like a “no-brainer” but trust me, from that personal experience two years ago, “nobody rocks your senior”, like you do. Ask common sense questions and be sure the right doctors have all the information you have. Remember, they are busy people and part of a team of professionals looking after your senior. You need to insure that proper communication occurs among them. The bottom line is that if you Act F.A.S.T. and follow through with common sense communications, you’ll be well on the way to saving your senior’s life and vitality, even when a dreaded stroke occurs. Thanks for reading All About Seniors…..see you next week! Bill Milby is a Director of Visiting Angels® of Central Georgia, a non-medical, living assistance service for seniors. If you have questions or comments about this column you can reach him at william.mercylink@gmail.com or search for us at www.facebook.com/VisitingAngelsofCentralGA/.