Hi again, James!  This is a continuation of my previous message:

JB>  If memory serves, stroke is more common than vehicle
JB>  collisions.


           I don't know... but I do know it is one of the three major
causes of death & it's much more common at younger ages than the
majority of people think it is.  When Nora was in the neurological ward at
BCCH, for example, we met two other kids who had recently had strokes...
and one of them was still a toddler.



JB>  I guess it's the undamaged hemisphere that can take
JB>  up the slack?


           As I understand the situation, this type of repair occurs within
the same hemisphere.  The cerebrum is quite large by comparison to other
areas.  If the part of the brain responsible for a particular function
still works, but is reduced in size, it may be able to recover &
expand.  If some part doesn't work at all its duties may be reassigned. 
But job assignments which were previously grouped together will thus be
scattered around various places, with a resulting slowdown in
communication, so the system tends to work less efficiently.



JB>  TOUGH work to be sure, FWIR.


           Yes, it is.  From our standpoint, however, the good news is that
the more effort a person puts into recovery the more they'll probably
recover.  :-)



JB>  we have to chase this stuff like an athlete, and usually
JB>  get refused until we camp out on their doorstep. /-:


           Uh-huh.  Nora needs help dealing with bureacracy... but IMHO she
has the right instincts.  When she was in hospital after her stroke, she
was asking for a wheelchair before she could sit erect without being
propped up.  Somebody gave us a song & dance about how she might fall
out of the wheelchair, at which point I mentioned that the nurses at UBC
had used a standard wheelchair when my father was in a similar situation
& propped him up with pillows... and that I'd be glad to bring the seat
belt we already owned.  Then they got the OT & the PT to figure out how
to get Nora out of bed & into a chair.  Eventually, these two ladies
remembered they had a neuro chair collecting dust in the basement... and
when one of the other Moms saw it she asked if her son could use it as
well!  I think the resources are available in many cases, but it's
necessary to take the initiative.  If you seem content to lie around
watching TV that's probably what you'll get.  But if you want something
more you may have to keep rattling cages until you find a person who knows
what's there & how you can access it....  :-)



JB>  Cheers! There are some you just can't get enough of,
JB>  and some you just try to escape. Just like in person,
JB>  really. You aint the later, I assure you!


           Aww, shucks... [blush].  And neither are you, BTW....  :-))




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+