Physical Experiences
Your disease, stroke which is caused by a circulatory problem in the brain, can affect your walking, speaking, breathing, and sensation functions. Stroke causes loss of movement and strength in one half of your body. Moreover, some internal organs may have lost their function due to this disease. This is the reason to bring you to the intensive care unit.
You may feel very exhausted and weak at first. This is a common situation in patients who are admitted to the intensive care unit. Stroke does not affect everyone in the same way. While some cannot move their right or left limbs at all, only a slight loss of force is observed in others. In addition, bed rest and inactivity cause loss of muscle mass. This loss occurs faster in patients with mechanical ventilation. Also drugs you take and infection, if any, adversely affect this loss. In-bed exercises and being physically active can prevent this and even restore movement lost. But do not forget that this process can take a long time. Therefore, please do not lose your hope and always be positive.
When patients whose respiratory function is affected do not perform adequate breathing on their own, they are connected to mechanical ventilation. These devices, also called respirators, are used to provide respiratory support to the patient. Insufficient respiratory functions make it difficult to remove the sputum produced by the lungs every day to prevent infection. This situation increases the risk of infection. Therefore, improving respiratory functions is one of the primary goals of treatment.
Psychological Experiences
You probably have a hard time understanding what is going on in the intensive care unit. You may think that this process will never end. You may lose your self-confidence, and worse you can face the fear of death. You may feel anxious, nervous, upset. You may also think that you are alone. Additionally, you may experience pain which is an unpleasant emotion caused by tissue damage, immobility and mechanical ventilation. Furthermore, some critical illnesses may cause hallucinations and negatively affect a person's ability to remain conscious. But remember, it is very normal to have such things. These feelings may be caused by the critical illness you have or the medications (drugs) you take. However, as you gain your physical health, you will get better. After that, these emotions will disappear over time. When you feel the things mentioned above, breathe deeply and try to calm down. At the same time, do not be afraid to talk to someone close to you and share your problems.
Sleep in the Intensive Care Unit
Regular and adequate sleep is one of the most important factors for body health. The conditions you are in and the medications you take may negatively affect your sleep patterns. You may find it harder to fall asleep. The time when you are awake may be prolonged. The noise of machines and staff, the ambient temperature and brightness can often cause sleep to split. Pain and discomfort caused by the endotracheal tube may also affect your sleep quality. Moreover, you might often have vivid dreams and nightmares. These are major sleep problems that can be seen in intensive care patients. You can talk to a nurse, physiotherapist, or other healthcare professionals for these problems. They can turn off bedside lights at night, make necessary arrangements for noise sources such as telephones and alarms, and provide some advice to improve sleep quality. Reading or listening to something before bedtime and avoiding caffeine-containing beverages such as tea and coffee are simple methods to improve sleep quality.
References
DING, Q., REDEKER, N. S., PISANI, M. A., YAGGI, H. K. & KNAUERT, M. P. 2017. Factors influencing patients’ sleep in the intensive care unit: perceptions of patients and clinical staff. American Journal of Critical Care, 26, 278-286.
HODGSON, C. L. & TIPPING, C. J. 2017. Physiotherapy management of intensive care unit-acquired weakness. Journal of physiotherapy, 63, 4-10.
LANGHORNE, P., BERNHARDT, J. & KWAKKEL, G. 2011. Stroke rehabilitation. The Lancet, 377, 1693-1702.
Talwar, A., Liman, B., Greenberg, H., Feinsilver, S.H. and Vijayan, V.K., 2008. Sleep in the intensive care unit. INDIAN JOURNAL OF CHEST DISEASES AND ALLIED SCIENCES, 50(1), p.151.
TOPÇU, S., ECEVIT ALPAR, Ş., GÜLSEVEN, B. & KEBAPÇI, A. 2017. Patient experiences in intensive care units: a systematic review. Patient Experience Journal, 4, 115-127.