STROKE REHABILITATION Information Sheet

Process Centred Osteopathy and Stroke Rehabilitation:

Stroke can be very disabling. By destroying neural cells, patients can lose important functions and be limited in their daily activities, such as walking, using their hands, etc.

Many people who are left disable after stroke think that these are permanent limitations in their lives. This attitude is sometimes reinforced by the limited resources of rehabilitation offered in general by the NHS.

Fortunately, the nervous system is very adaptable, and many stroke patients can re-learn some of their lost activities, as different parts of the brain can take over the activities controlled by the areas affected in the stroke.

A therapy was developed to make better use of this potential for adaptation. This kind of rehabilitation of stroke patients is one of the uses of Process Centred Osteopathy and it can be very successful.

The process of re-learning daily activities is very similar to the process of first learning them, when we are growing up and it is not very different from the process of rehabilitation of injured patients, for instance, injured athletes.

Therapy sessions are gentle and fun, as patients are helped and challenged to go beyond their limits, increasing their capabilities step by step.

Our organisms adapt in two different dimensions:

• Muscles, ligaments, joints, etc, which have been unused for long time tend to atrophy and need to be brought back to their former functioning state.

• The brain also needs to change and new areas take over the functions performed by the areas affected by the stroke.

The process is slow, and usually takes many months. It is, however, rewarding to regain some of the functions lost due to the stroke.

The sooner after the stroke that rehabilitation starts, the faster and greater the results. People are, nevertheless, always capable of adaptation, and it is never too late to start rehabilitation.

Process Centred Osteopathy Rehabilitation of Stroke Patients is effective in rehabilitating neuromuscular activities, such as walking and using the hand and arm. It is not suited for speech therapy.