First Assessment
Free
45 minutes, at home
- Full clinical examination at the patient's home
- The likely cause explained in plain language
- A realistic recovery plan and what it will cost
- No obligation to book any further sessions
Leaving hospital after a stroke brings relief and worry at once. In Swargate, home might be a flat up two flights of stairs, a room off a shared wada courtyard, or a house where three generations share a small space. Rehabilitation has to fit that space, and it only works if the people living there know how to help.
The wider picture of recovery and what physiotherapy targets is in our stroke rehabilitation guide. This page is about doing that work at home.
Rehearsing the tasks that matter in your home
Recovery after a stroke depends heavily on repeating real activities. So instead of a sheet of abstract exercises, sessions are built around tasks: rolling over and sitting up on the patient's own bed, standing from the chair they actually use, turning in a narrow passage, stepping over a raised threshold, using the bathroom. If the bathroom has an Indian-style toilet, the physiotherapist will help the family decide whether a commode chair is safer for now.
The weaker arm needs attention from the start. A shoulder left hanging without support can become painful, so positioning in bed and in the chair is taught early, and the arm is brought into everyday tasks, such as steadying a plate or a glass, as soon as movement allows.
Teaching the family to help
Often one family member becomes the main helper almost overnight. Lifting the patient by the arms, or doing everything for them, is common and understandable, but it can injure the helper and hold back the patient. The physiotherapist shows the helper:
- how to assist a move from bed to chair without pulling on the weak arm;
- where to stand when the patient walks, and where to stand on the stairs;
- which exercises to repeat between visits, and how many;
- how to tell an ordinary tired day from a warning sign.
As recovery moves on, unsteadiness and the risk of falling often become the main concern; the approach on elderly physiotherapy in Swargate covers that in more detail.
Going out again
For many families, the first trip out after a stroke is a follow-up appointment, often by auto-rickshaw through Jedhe Chowk. Getting into an auto is a skill of its own: sit down first, backwards, then bring the legs in one at a time. It is worth practising with a chair at home before the day. Later goals might be the lane outside, a visit to the temple, or a slow round of Saras Baug with someone alongside.
Each goal is broken into steps the patient can practise between visits, and progress is measured by what they can do, not by how many exercises they finish.
New symptoms are an emergency
A fresh droop of the face, slurred speech, new weakness or numbness, or a sudden severe headache may mean another stroke. Call an ambulance at once; treatment is time-critical. Coughing or choking with every sip of water is also a reason to contact the doctor promptly.
Families on Shankar Sheth Road can read the Shankar Sheth Road stroke page, and our article on recovering at home after a stroke answers common questions. To arrange the first visit, book an assessment, or see how home visits in Swargate work.