I slept 12 ½ hours in the past 24 hours. My brain needs rest, but no matter how much I sleep, I still wake up in a concussion-like fog with headaches and visual sensitivity. Sleep is one of the most critical yet frustrating aspects of stroke recovery. I know that sleep is necessary for neuroplasticity, and my brain is actively healing while I rest. However, with all this rest I start to feel like I’m being lazy. It’s a balancing act, for sure, between being active enough to progress, not pushing myself past the point of regression, and knowing when to stop and rest.

In a society that glorifies pushing through fatigue for the sake of success, I’ve had to retrain myself to understand that rest is an active part of recovery. While I sleep, my brain is locking in progress, reinforcing new pathways through neuroplasticity, like pressing the ‘save’ button. In stroke recovery, even in stillness, healing continues.

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#StrokeRecovery #HealingTakesTime #BrainHealth #Neuroplasticity #RestIsRecovery #InvisibleIllness #FatigueIsReal #ListenToYourBody #OneDayAtATime #SelfCompassion