Every 19 minutes, one Australian will experience a stroke but most people don't recognise the signs. National Stroke Week is from the 5th -11th August and the stroke foundation is hoping to increase awareness about what to look for when emergency strikes.
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00:00Allison never thought Jane Austen would transform her life.
00:04But it wasn't reading Pride and Prejudice that did it,
00:07it was typing it out.
00:09So I took the book, I sat at the computer and I thought,
00:13well, OK, you know, I'll see how I go.
00:16She was training her brain to recover from a stroke she suffered
00:19while at work in March.
00:21It was really hard at the beginning and I thought,
00:23I want to get up to a level of competence where I can go,
00:26yeah, that's all right, I can stop now.
00:30Allison is one of more than nearly half a million Australians
00:33living with the effects of a stroke,
00:35a condition that often goes undiagnosed and even unnoticed
00:39by the patient.
00:40As Stroke Awareness Week is marked around the country,
00:43people are being urged to learn the signs using the memory aid fast.
00:48F is for face, so if your face is drooping on one side,
00:52that's a sign.
00:53A is for arm, so if you can't lift both arms above your head,
00:56that's a sign.
00:58S is for speech, so if you're slurred or you can't get your words out,
01:02that's another sign.
01:03And T, T is for time.
01:05Because after a stroke, every minute counts.
01:09Every minute after a stroke, 1.9 million brain cells die.
01:1380% of strokes are preventable.
01:16What we eat, how we exercise, what is our life, school, life,
01:21work, balance, what stresses are we exposed to,
01:25mindfulness, sleep.
01:27And getting straight into recovery after a stroke is vital.
01:31People get 80% of their improvement, roughly,
01:35within three months from stroke.
01:37So time is really critical.
01:39Every day I'm getting a little bit better.
01:41And for that I'm very thankful.
01:43A long recovery ahead, but Alison is hopeful she's on the right track.