Stroke Wellbeing Service

Who are we and what do we do?

Who are we?

We are a specialist NHS service offering neuropsychological assessment and support in the early stages following a stroke within North Cumbria.

We work closely with the staff on the Hyper Acute Stroke Unit; local wards; and in the Early Supported Stroke Discharge Teams in the community, to offer therapy, support and advice to patients in the very early stages of recovery after stroke. We mainly provide in-patient support and can offer further assessment and support in the community following discharge. The Stroke Wellbeing service consists of Psychological Practitioners, Cognitive Behavioural Therapists and Assistant Psychologists.

The team can offer wellbeing and cognitive assessments to tailor therapeutic support for people following a stroke, helping them understand and manage emotional and/or cognitive changes. We use a range of evidence-based approaches to help you manage your emotions and how they may be linked to your stroke, supporting you to adjust during your recovery.

It is normal to feel overwhelmed following a stroke, which can be a life-changing event. Many patients who have had a stroke can experience feelings such as sadness, guilt, anger and increased worry. We can support you with adjustment after stroke and the changes you may be experiencing during the early stages of stroke recovery and provide emotional support during this time.

What do we do?

Rates of depression and anxiety are high after strokes, and recovery is often made harder by changes in thinking skills such as memory and problem-solving abilities that the person would usually draw on to help them adapt to change.

We offer advice and support you to practice useful coping strategies to help you manage difficulties you are facing in your daily life. We will encourage you to use these strategies, to engage in what is important to you, helping you move forward to live a meaningful life. We can also offer cognitive assessment to identify areas of cognitive change, which is common after a stroke, to support and deliver cognitive rehabilitation. Below, are a few of the things we can help support you with:

-Managing unhelpful thoughts

-Building better routines

-Helping you to sleep better

-Managing stress, anxiety, or low mood

-Help you to understand and manage fatigue

-Improve memory, thinking and organisational skill

What can you expect from us?

The service aims to offer neuropsychological assessment to every patient admitted to hospital within North Cumbria who have experienced a stroke. You will have the opportunity to talk about your mood and thinking skills and to discuss any worries you have as a result of your stroke. This will usually happen on the Hyper Acute Stroke Unit, within hours or days of you coming into the hospital.

Our team will then talk to you about further support we can offer. This might include some psychological therapy, leaning some new skills to improve your thinking, some one-to-one sessions with one of our team, and the opportunity to join in some group sessions on the ward with others who may be experiencing a similar experience to you.

We often hold wellbeing groups on the ward to support emotional wellbeing when recovering from a stroke. This group aims to provide a supportive space to help with emotional changes with mindfulness, relaxation techniques, and mood-boosting activities. Patients can take part in a variety of activities such as arts and crafts, interactive games, and cognitive rehabilitation exercises. The group offers an opportunity to connect with others who have a shared experience.

We usually work with people in the early weeks after their stroke. This work will usually start straight away and we will work with you during your time in the hospital. When you go home, we will talk to your rehab team and will often give you a call to see how you are settling in. We can offer support for individuals in the community, for example, with ongoing emotional difficulties such as low mood or anxiety or adjustment to life after stroke.

When we come to the end of our treatment, we will make recommendations on what you can continue to do to maintain and improve your wellbeing after stroke. This might involve offering additional practical strategies, giving you written information about the work we have done together, and referrals to other organisations such as the Stroke Association.

Confidentiality

Details of your sessions are put on your medical record, but you can tell us if you do not feel ok with anything being shared with your GP or other members of your care team.

We will only talk about you outside of the stroke team when you give permission, or if we think you are at risk of harm and we need to protect you or others.

We will keep your GP and/ or consultant up to date by sending letters about your appointments so they know how you are and what you are currently working on – you will also get a copy of these letters.

Why this approach?

It allows us to support you with your individual needs, and work with you to best manage your difficulties. This approach can be adapted to what you are experiencing at any one time, and what will help you the most. We hope that by working together and making decisions jointly, we will allow you to feel supported and in control throughout - this is guided by information from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence .

What do our patients say?

Please click here to see more general patient feedback.

Please also see the Neuropsychology Self Help Resources

Further resources

https://php.cumbria.nhs.uk/patients/resources/neuropsychology - Physical Health Rehabilitation Psychology resources. This website has been designed to give you some extra information on things you can try yourself to manage the problems most commonly reported by the people we see.

www.stroke.org.uk/ The Stroke Association – The Stroke Association support people to rebuild their lives after stroke Stroke Association Helpline: 0303 3033 100

Contact us - 01768 245954

Cumbria Stroke Wellbeing Service, Physical Health and Rehabilitation Psychology Services
The Coppice, The Carleton Clinic, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA1 3SX