Life after stroke in Appalachia

Five main themes emerged: 1) Frustration with new physical and functional impairment, 2) Negative emotions including anger, guilt, loneliness, and depression 3) Need for accessible support, 4) Longing for home during recovery and, 5) Stepping forward after stroke which included sub-themes of perseverance, acceptance, and retraining. Anger was described as contributing to delayed recover and emotional lability was described as a source of anger. The familiarity of home was viewed as key to reestablishing control over one's life. Survivors described how they developed perseverance to move forward and emphasized that willingness to participate in retraining led to adapting to impairments. Acceptance was described as letting go of prior expectations of self and others so one could live in the present.