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| THE COLONY NEWS | NOVEMBER 2020 | 19 COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD By Ann Carter, Colony Aerobics Instructor/Personal Trainer Let's start with what a stroke is… a stroke is a condition where an individual's brain becomes deprived of its blood supply due to an artery that ruptures or becomes obstructed. This mechanism causes the cells within the brain to begin to die — the very definition of a stroke. There are three kinds of strokes: • TIA or Transient Ischemic Attack is a mini-stroke or a warning – symptoms last for a very short period of time. • Ischemic stroke – These occur when a blood clot keeps blood from flowing to your brain, often due to atherosclerosis. Unlike a TIA, the blood clot won't go away without treatment. 87 percent of strokes are ischemic. • A hemorrhagic stroke results when a blood vessel in your brain ruptures, causing blood to spill into surrounding tissues. If you think you or someone else might be having a stroke, what are the signs to look for? The National Stroke Association recommends the acronym FAST as a method to help identify warning signs of a stroke. F: Face - When you smile, does one side of the face now droop? A: Arms - When you raise both arms, does one arm drift down or not respond at all, or does so very weakly? S: Speech - Has your speech suddenly become slurred? Are you having trouble talking? T: Time! - If you experience any of these symptoms, call 911 immediately! If you seek treatment within three hours of an ischemic stroke, your doctor may be able to give you a medication known as 'tissue Plasminogen Activator' or (tPA). This medication, delivered through an IV, can dissolve the clot before much damage occurs. So don't be worried about calling 911 — if you're wrong, you can bake the firefighters some cookies and they will forgive you. Strokes… What You Should Know The Firefighters with the Murrieta Fire Department no longer visit homes to change batteries in smoke detectors. A Fire Inspector can come out but only if a visit can be fit it into their busy schedule, which may not be as timely as you would like to stop the beeping. They recommend that if your detector is beyond its 10-year life span, replace it with a new 10-year smoke detector and use 10-year batteries. Please do NOT call the local fire station. All calls must go through 304-FIRE (3473) or 911 in an emergency. Smoke Detector Batteries