A stroke happens when blood flow is cut off to an area of the brain either by a blockage or if a blood vessel within the brain ruptures. The cells in the area begin to die, as they aren’t receiving any oxygen. This causes certain abilities in your body to lose control. The brain can’t tell them what to do anymore.
Symptoms to look out for are numbness in the face, leg or arm, particularly if these are all on one side of the body. Difficulty seeing, dizziness and trouble walking, headache and vomiting and confusion, trouble understanding or speaking.
Depending on how much of the brain is damaged at the time of a stroke will determine exactly how much motor function or memory is lost. This can range from temporary weakness in limbs, or mild memory loss, to complete paralysis of one side of the body and the loss of speech. The treatments for stroke vary greatly and depend on which kind of stroke you may experience: Ischemic, Hemorrhagic or Transient Ischemic (mini strokes).
A stroke can happen very quickly. Many people recover from strokes but around 80,000 people are affected each year.