Stroke and personality changes: psychological alterations after a stroke

A stroke or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) is among the most frequent reasons for seeking urgent care due to a cerebral circulation disorder, and it should be noted that the chances of recovery are reduced every minute that passes from the moment it is suffered the accident until professional help is obtained.

A close relationship has been found between having suffered a stroke and personality changes, some of these changes being the following: difficulties empathizing with other people, loss of sense of humor, aggressiveness, loss of social inhibitions, introversion, emotional stability , rigidity or loss of initiative, among others. In this sense, here we will talk about the relationship between a stroke and personality changes .

stroke or cerebrovascular accident

Stroke or cerebrovascular accident, both hemorrhagic and ischemic, can produce very significant personality changes in addition to the effects suffered at a physical and health level. When a person survives a stroke, they may experience a series of subsequent behavioral changes that could affect different areas of their lives and also the lives of those closest to them.

As we mentioned before, there is a close relationship between having suffered a stroke and personality changes, as well as other changes on a physical level. The most common symptoms when suffering a stroke are those that are going to be listed below:

• Serious speech difficulties.
• Loss of strength in the middle of the body (face, leg and arm on the same side).
• Feeling tingling in the middle of the body or loss of sensation in that area.
• A very bad headache that is different from a regular headache.
• A sudden loss of vision in one eye.

On the other hand, we can highlight the following risk factors for suffering a stroke:

• To live a sedentary lifestyle.
• Obesity and/or diabetes mellitus.
• Regular consumption of alcohol, tobacco and/or some drugs (cocaine, amphetamines, etc.).
• Have high blood pressure.
• Having suffered from some type of heart disease.
• Have high cholesterol levels.

It should be noted that if lifestyle habits are improved, the risk of suffering a stroke is drastically reduced , and for this, some advice such as these can be followed: practicing physical exercise on a regular basis, if you manage to reach a healthy weight, maintain cholesterol levels are controlled, smoking is stopped and the consumption of those drugs that increase the risk of suffering a stroke is avoided or diabetes is controlled, among other things.

Can a stroke cause personality changes?

Since there is a relationship between suffering a stroke and personality changes, it is worth mentioning that recognizing these changes and having found the reason can be a big step in the right direction in order to modify those unwanted behaviors while working with the help from a professional to recover those personality traits that make the patient feel more like "themselves". In other words, it would be advisable to start by working on those traits that the patient considers to be most characteristic of his personality and his way of being.

Next we are going to see what are the personality changes that occur with the highest percentage among people who have suffered a stroke.

1. Difficulties in empathizing with other people

When we want to talk about the relationship between stroke and personality changes, we are going to start by explaining that it is quite common for patients who have survived a stroke or cerebrovascular accident to suffer serious difficulties in empathizing with other people, and this could be due to brain damage Produced in this type of cases, it affects several regions of the right cerebral hemisphere .

The difficulty in showing empathy affects the relationships of these people with their loved ones, so it is convenient for them to be informed and thus be aware that the patient who has suffered a stroke needs understanding and professional help to train properly. again the skills that facilitate a greater development of empathy, although it is not always possible for the patient to improve in that aspect or even not enough. In any case, the help of both your relatives and qualified professionals is essential.

2. A loss of sense of humor

It's quite common for people who have had a stroke to suffer from a loss or diminution of their sense of humour, so someone who was once funny may lose the ability to make the jokes they used to do before they had their stroke. At the same time that person might not be able to get the joke or find it funny .

It is worth mentioning that when you suffer a loss of sense of humor it could be quite difficult to recover because this is usually caused by a loss of some cognitive abilities, so perhaps you should work first to recover those abilities. affected.

3. Loss of social inhibitions

The loss of social inhibitions is also noteworthy when one wants to talk about the relationship between stroke and personality changes, and this is because some people who have suffered a stroke could behave in ways that are considered socially inappropriate. This usually happens when the stroke occurs in the frontal lobe part of the brain . On the other hand, in this type of case, the normal thing is that the person is not aware that they are behaving in an inappropriate way, so it could be difficult for them to try to correct their behavior.

4. aggressiveness

Aggressiveness is also common in many cases when they have suffered a stroke, being characteristic in these cases that they have become unexpectedly hostile and with higher levels of anger than was previously common in these people. In addition, some people may behave in a cruel and/or physically aggressive way.

Aggressiveness is more characteristic of those cases of patients who have suffered a severe stroke or even who have a stroke pattern that causes vascular dementia . This dementia typically develops when several small strokes have occurred over a period of time.

5. Emotional instability

Many of the patients who have suffered a stroke may suffer emotional instability. In these cases, inappropriate laughter or crying can be observed. In addition, there are cases of patients who have suffered from what is known as emotional lability or pseudobulbar syndrome , which is characterized by uncontrollable emotional expressions and sudden mood swings.

6. Social avoidance and other changes in social behavior

When it comes to associating stroke and personality changes, it should be noted that it is quite common for these patients to become more introverted, isolated and/or socially avoidant. One of the causes of a person's isolation could be the fact that after the stroke they are not able to do some things with ease that they used to master. In other more serious cases, the isolation could be due to suffering from severe difficulties in performing various tasks (for example, getting out of bed, driving, etc.).

Other possible psychological sequelae produced after having suffered a stroke

In addition to being able to observe a close relationship between stroke and personality changes, different studies have also found other psychological consequences caused by a cerebrovascular accident or stroke. Those most common sequels are the ones we are going to see next.

1. Anosognosia

Anosognosia or stroke denial is the inability of the patient who has suffered a stroke to recognize it . Therefore, anosognosia could manifest itself as a result of an overconfidence and ignorance that there is something wrong after having suffered a stroke. Because of this, it is possible that this person feels disconcerted when it comes to receiving medical attention directed to the different complications suffered as a result of the stroke.

2. Loss of cognitive abilities

It is also very characteristic that there is a loss of cognitive abilities after a stroke in almost any of the regions of the brain, although they tend to occur more frequently in those strokes that affect the parietal lobe, the frontal lobe or the temporal lobe .

Within the loss of cognitive abilities in these cases, problems can be observed in solving problems, in reading, in logical-mathematical reasoning and also serious difficulties with language. Memory problems and difficulties in reading are also frequent. understanding of some concepts. However, with the help of a professional and with the effort to improve on the part of the patient, it is possible that there will be an improvement that will help alleviate, as far as possible, this type of cognitive deficit.

3. Lack of motivation or apathy

Lack of motivation is very common in people who have suffered any type of brain injury, which is why it is also common after having suffered a stroke. And it is that as there is a decrease in cognitive abilities after the stroke, many daily tasks that used to be carried out without too much effort now become challenging and/or difficult to solve . In addition, here depression could play an important role.

4. Depression

Among the most common psychological sequelae after having suffered a stroke, we can find depression, which is also a mental health condition that can affect various personality traits, so it could be considered that depression would play an important role in time to relate a stroke and personality changes.

Moreover, in some studies carried out in this regard, it has been observed that more than half of the cases of people who have survived a stroke have come to suffer from symptoms of depression. This could be due to the fact that people who have had a stroke have a variety of health problems (for example, physical limitations, brain changes, or other types of health problems).