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was that really a stroke now or something else?

Posted , 4 users are following.

teras
teras

hi. im 29. healthy. dont have any health issues whatsoever. had all  clotting etc tests done a few years ago as well, and all is fine... a few days ago i was watching something at my laptop. as i moved my eyes around in the room i realised i wasnt able to see much from my right eye. no other symptom. it lasted about 10-15 mins. then it started getting better. next morning i went to the a&e. they checked my eyes and were fine. they sent me to the stroke clinic within the hospital, they did mris, ct scans of brain neck etc, heart tests,  blood tests etc. all normal. they said it doesnt sound like anything really (hows that even possible!) but asked me to take plavix for a year to be on the safe side. obviously im extremely worried. since then im scared of every minute. i need someone to explain if theres anything else this could be. btw i dont suffer from headaches, migraines etc. could a TIA not show up in any test and happen in a person with no clotting probs? if not, what else can this be?

0 likes, 22 replies

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  • Helen03706
    Helen03706 teras

    Posted

    Yes it could have been a TIA, they rarely show up on tests etc as the thing with TIA's against strokes is the damage is not permanent. My brother (aged 51) had a suspected TIA in 2015 and the Dr's said that one of the things is they are very rarely witnessed as they happen so quickly and the outward symptoms pass so quickly. He is still on Clopidogrel. I had a full blown stroke also in 2015 (aged 50) it struck in my visual cortex and the damage is still there and I will be on Clopidogrel (Plavix) for life, they have since found that mine was caused by a heart problem and I'm getting a wireless pacemaker fitted next week.

    My advice for you would be try not to stress over it, take the tablets and do some life style changes you are only young and have a long life in front of you. 

    • teras
      teras Helen03706

      Posted

      hi there! im eating healthy, i dont eat salt, i exercise daily, i dont have any heart issues, i dont eat fried food or sugars. so really..i had no reason to have a stroke so young :o. and also i have slight hemophilia so taking aspirin for life is sort of scary. i dont form clots, so i dont know how this could happen. what are the other options?
  • DoctorMark
    DoctorMark teras

    Posted

    TIA is one possibility but they usually come with other stroke like symptoms (face droop, slurred speech etc) The eyes are one of the most sensitive organs in the body when it comes to blood pressure, a small change can effect vision for a short time. If a small clot was to form in or near the retinal veins this could very easy effect vision in one eye. As mentioned TIA is a possibility but if it was a TIA it was a very minor one. I am sorry to say that TIA and stroke can effect anyone, people with higher cholesterol, smokers, drinkers and high blood pressure have higher risk but TIAs and strokes can literally happen to anyone, living a healthy lifestyle only REDUCES the risk of infarction.

    Mark

  • humpalumpa
    humpalumpa teras

    Posted

    Hi teras, I couldn't say what this incident was , however I can tell you that this sound very similar to my experience , I woke up one morning with no vision in my L eye , I didn't panic , went to the loo got back into bed etc and waited and gradually my sight returned , via initially a strap line which gradually expanded until my sight returned , two days later my sight partially went again on my L eye but only like I couldn't see anything above waist height , I now became concerned and visited my GP who told me it was visual migraine !!

    This happened on another two occasion and my daughter then took me to A@E where a Stroke nurse took over my case within a few hrs I was diagnosed with Amorax Fugis ( think that's how it's spelt ) and booked in for a Carotid Endarterectomy which cleared my Carotid Artery of Plaque , this apparently was the reason I kept having visual disturbances ! The plaque was breaking up and travelling up into my brain and on it's travels was blocking an artery behind my eyes , now it was explained that if I didn't have this operation the plaque may reach my brain and cause a full blown Stroke ! So whilst I had my reservations about the surgery I am in no doubt my life was saved from a much worse fate .

    Now I am In NO way saying that this is what is happening to you , but there are familiarities so I would advise you just to act upon each incident as and when they happen .

    Sorry for such a long post but it's the only way I could explain my experience .

    Good luck and stay on top of it all x

    • teras
      teras humpalumpa

      Posted

      hi, im sorry you went through this. i hope youre doing great now! sometimes bad things happen to prevent us from worse ones in the future!

      i am concerned about the diagnosis of mine, because i dont have any plaque. if there was a reason for it...i would be ok, you know what i mean? now all my organs are totally fine, my blood pressure is normal, no thrombophilia..im confused. and scared. theres usually a reason it happens, mine doesnt seem to have one

    • DoctorMark
      DoctorMark teras

      Posted

      Please don't dismiss the migraine prognosis, migraine with aura will present with stroke like symptoms, these can be as minor as effective vision to temporary hemi-facial paralysis.

      I would just like to state that infarction (clots) aren't always caused by plaque and arterial debris. They can be caused by local swelling, pressure and trauma.

      Mark

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      i need to find a way to relax. this has devastated me. i dont know why. im unable to sleep, it has affected me that much. the doc said that if all tests and scans are clear then it probably wasnt. because even TIA will always show up somehow. not on scans. but maybe there be a hint in the blood tests or something.

      i was faced with a more horrible diagnosis a few years back, and i was ok with it. this time, i feel hopeless.

    • DoctorMark
      DoctorMark teras

      Posted

      Do try to relax, my personal opinion is you did not suffer a TIA or any form of clot, however you said you were watching something on your laptop, we're you in a dark room, laid down resting your head on your hand or anything like that? We're you cold, any feeling of light headed during the "attack" was your vision blurry, spotty, any zigzags in your vision? Any in depth detail about your environment, posture while using your laptop and details of your vision impairment.

      Mark

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      i was staring at my laptop(watching something) in a dark room for about 3 hours. i was lying on my left side. i only realised my eye was blurry when i looked at the window. i looked back at the pc and i could see. and then i looked at the door and i couldnt see it clearly. i walked to the living room (lights turned off) and i could see blurry from my right eye. i could see the fridge..the corners of it..but for example i couldnt see the rest of it clearly. i looked outside and i could see the lights etc, but when i looked at the park (which has no lights) i couldnt see it. it was wiped out. i couldnt see the details, i just saw it like a pile of dark sand. and also..ill try to explain this in english as best as i can...you know, at night when the light comes in from the window and it forms shapes on the wall? i couldnt see those when i looked straight it them. 
    • DoctorMark
      DoctorMark teras

      Posted

      Okay that's good. I can now deduce that it was almost certainly not a clotting incident. It sound like your right eye had been over stressed, your sudden sitting up only made the problem worse. As your elevate your head above the level of the heard blood pressure drops and the eyes are very sensitive to changes of blood pressure. Your left eye was closer to a surface so it focused on less light, where as your right eye was taking in more light and sending more information to your brain.

      Severe eye strain doesn't always present with a headache or tightness in the temple but prolonged exposure to the visual task can cause the eye to become weak and focusing can become a task in itself. A bright laptop and a dark room is a very bad combination, it's a huge cause of eye strain.

      Mark

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      it was just a slight tilt of the head though. slight. i would hope so its just that. i have a silly comment to make...about these light formations on the wall from the light outside when its night? is it normal we dont see them when we look straight at them? or was it just me?

      i would really like to thank you and the 2 people above from taking the time from your lives to reply to my concerns. i never posted online before and didnt expect to get any response, and i really appreciate you spending time to talk to me. i really do.

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      i started seeing blurry while i was lying down. i just moved my eyesight up to the window when i realised it
    • DoctorMark
      DoctorMark teras

      Posted

      Yes you won't notice the eye is stressed until you look away and tries to adjust to different light levels. Only then will you notice distorted or blurry vision. The light patterns on the wall from the window appeared to not be there because you right eye may be your stronger eye, allowing you to perceive depth and because you couldn't focus your left eye followed suit and didn't focus on the shape, effectively blending the light out.

      Try to use your laptop in a little room. I know it can be uncomfortable sometimes but even if you use a small lamp to light the room dimly that will really help.

      Mark

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      yes, in general my right side is the best. i never thought of this, none of the doctors mentioned it to me. and i had quite a few seeing me.

      i hope its that. it looks like im not the strong person i thought i was. i know people go through horrible things and im losing my faith with a possible TIA. im ashamed of myself. im paralyzed with fear. 

    • DoctorMark
      DoctorMark teras

      Posted

      Like I said I really don't think it was a TIA, the doctors have you on medication for precaution.

      You can always return to your doctor and let him know your fear, he/she will give you peace of mind. I am quite confident when I say you have nothing to worry about. A TIA is treatable and so is a stroke if caught in time, effects can still be reversed even of not caught in time.

      Take your mind away from it by doing something you enjoy, anything that'll make you laugh or happy (no laptop in dark rooms for now though)

      Mark

    • teras
      teras DoctorMark

      Posted

      i will try my best. im scared but will get better..

      i will return to gym, i was scared to go all these days in case it was a TIA and i thought exercise might create another stroke. ive also lowered the light on the laptop and at work since that day. 

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