After Stroke or Head Injury, everything changes. Not just for the survivor, but for family, and friends too.
Exercise,balance and walking training are all key elements after stroke, so we'll show you how to get started.
Take a tour and watch some of the videos. We're here to help. Ask reception to arrange a chat on 0800 9 020 191. Some mobile carriers may charge for those calls so you can just use the 01803 640241 number if you prefer.
Speak to a Local Physio today. We cover the whole of Torbay and South Hams
01
After Stroke, Long-Term Pain can be a big problem
Many people tell us at first that they don't have pain. It is often the case that they don't have it because they aren't moving. Acupuncture helps most people and might suit you. Relieving pain can then help restore the movement faster.
If not there are so many ways we can help.
If pain relief after stroke or head injury is a problem for you or a family member, you will need personalised advice on how to get started.
Acupuncture has no side-effects and has shown itself very useful in post-stroke pain relief.Ask us about how it might help you or a family member.
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02
Physiotherapy
Chartered and Health Professions Council Registered Physiotherapists
We can advise you how the very practical hands on approach provided here, can help recovery after stroke, brain injury or illness.
Find out how physiotherapy will work to help regain function after Stroke, Head Injury, Parkinson's Disease and Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury.
This picture shows one way we help. It shows a specialised support to control movement in the foot. This one is called the Trulife Matrix.
Providing a better form of support for the foot and ankle can really make a difference very quickly.
These are generally not available from the NHS, but it's a fit and forget fix. Once you have it ( if its suitable for you ) you don't need ongoing appointments to benefit.
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03
Home exercise programmes
Your rehabilitation starts with a proactive approach
It's great to have an active approach, and we help people in a number of ways to get the best from their home exercise programme. We might teach family or carers how to hold and support you, as well as targeted hands on treatment provided by us.
We often add to our treatments by making prompts and guides, which might be written down, or the very best is on video, to play back on your own television, iPad, computer or laptop.
In this way you can see your own progress, and have a home exercise programme that includes all the hints and tips to make your progress the best it can be.
This picture shows the Bioness L300 Go Plus, the latest technology to splint and control ankle and leg movement after stroke that has resulted in drop foot or a knee that flicks back or gives way.
We made a video guide for this person and his carer, showing how to wear and use this amazing technology.
It adds to the instructions and guides that came with it, providing very personalised information for that individual.
04
Stroke treatment methods
The worlds' foremost approach was developed right here in the UK
In the 50's and 60's Berta Bobath was a physiotherapist in England. She was married to Karel, a Neurologist, and together they developed a concept to treat people with brain and spinal cord illnesses and injuries.
Since then,The Bobath Concept has been developed by some amazing therapists, and we have had the pleasure of working with some of the greats.
I particularly want to thank Mary Lynch-Ellerington, Lynne Fletcher, Linzi Meadows, Sharon Williams, Jenni Williams and Patti Shelley amongst others, who have been inspiration and guide to us down the years.
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05
Rehabilitation
Speeding up your recovery from trauma and injury
Rehabilitation takes teamwork. We work alonside your NHS family doctor, Speech and Language therapists, Occupational Therapists and more, to help you recover from stroke, head injury or the rarer brain injuries or illnesses.
This picture is from a regional Stroke Forum, that took place in Exeter. Doctors, Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists, all meet once a year as a large group to develop new ways of working, improve old ones and share best practice from across the region and the nation.
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06
Chronic Pain
Reducing diverse types of chronic pain
Pain that lasts for more than a few weeks needs a different approach. It goes without saying it can have a serious effect on your overall well-being.
Together, we’ll explore the source of your pain and come up with the right ideas to relieve the symptoms.
Our experience tells us that acupuncture is one of the best ways to relieve pain after stroke. This shows the needling that helped a lady with arm pain.
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Q. It's been several months now since my stroke. We've been told that there is nothing more to be done. Is there anything that can help ?
A. The longest gap in our personal experience, from stroke to starting treatment is 6 years. This was in a most unusual case of a man who had had no early help at all to regain walking. It resulted in going from no walking to fully independent walking. Treatments change over time; we say that it's never too late to ask. We'll give you our honest opinion, even in the unlikely event that we can't help.
Q. I've been given a plastic moulded splint to support my ankle. It doesn't work that well, and although I can get around my walking is poor. Can you help ?
A. There are four main kinds of splint; number one, the common plastic type that is moulded over the back of the calf and under the foot, numbers two and three: 2 new kinds carbon fibre spring splints, and number four is the electronic muscle stimulation splint for foot-drop. If you have only tried one, then it can help to be re - assessed with some of the modern ones in mind. Just ask.
Q. I have heard of electrical muscle stimulation . Would this suit me ?
A. We started using electrical muscle stimulators in 1990, and have used a wide variety of the equipment available, from the simple and very inexpensive Auvon EMS, The Neurotrac Rehab range and right up to the Bioness H200, and the Ottobock L300 Go and L300 Go Plus.
We also have had good experiences with the Walkaide XFT foot drop electrical muscle stimulator. The Walkaide is newer to the market and is a lot simpler to set up. It's not so sophisticated as the L300 so is a lot less expensive, but it works very well with most people. Ask us about a trial.
Also we work with Remotion Ltd. providing people with the whole body suit called the Mollii suit.
Every year we attend the European Neuro Convention, where the latest developments are available on display and to test.
Q. What are the best home exercises to do after stroke ?
A. There are a few ideas here on this site and we are working hard to create more videos for a YouTube channel. In the end the best exercises are ones you can actually do on your own. Even better we think are ones that you make up for your self. We love it when going back for a follow up, to be asked " what do you think of this exercise that I have been trying ? " The answer will almost certainly be that it's great.
Any exercise you do will benefit from refining, whoever you are. Even the best movers in the world, like football stars and tennis geniuses have coaches. One of the hardest things is having the confidence to start off without too much fear of making a mistake.In the field of Evolutionary Psychology, this is called the EGO TRAP, and is THE root cause of procrastination, whether you have had a stroke or not.
Mostly, making mistakes is really the process by which we all learn. Speaking of my own physiotherapy experience, the more experience I have the more open I become, to saying that I make mistakes in work all the time. That's to say I try treatment approaches that DON'T work for an individual. If it's not working the trick is not to pursue it , and the " mistake " is spotted and rectified so quickly that my patients don't usually even notice. Meanwhile, we have moved along to a method that is more promising.
One thing you can be sure of if you work with me, is that you have been exposed to a wide range of methods, and each one has quickly been evaluated for it's usefulness for you.
In the past, people were given lists, with drawings, of exercises to follow. It was difficult to do home work this way, so most often now we make a custom video of your home exercises, so you can follow and judge your progress. This works really well if you have a computer or a modern television in your house, and we make your custom films appear on your own screen. Technology !
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’The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy is the professional, educational and trade union body for the UK’s 57,000 chartered physiotherapists, physiotherapy students and associates’
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