ROXANA SASU MD, RN Improving Left Brain Stroke Deficits With ILF HD EEG INSTITUTE, WOODLAND HILLS, CA
Developmental and Trauma History Rickets, underweight as a child Molested and abused Very active and aggressive child Cancer and chemotherapy at 52 years old Stroke January 2016 - left brain Deficits on right side of body, hemianopsia
Genetic History Migraine Depression and bipolar depression Anxiety Panic OCD Dyslexia Schizophrenia Alcohol addiction Seizures
Presenting Concerns: Before Stroke Difficulty Falling Asleep Anxiety Depression dissatisfied with her life High blood pressure Type II diabetes Poor focus and memory Tinnitus developed after chemotherapy Lorazepam, Ativan dependency Occasional knee pain Hay fever, sinus allergies Sugar cravings
Presenting Concerns: After Stroke Needing 10 hours of sleep/night Restless sleep - uncomfortable Occasional head pain - 2x/week Poor focus and memory Right side hemianopsia Spasticity in right arm, leg Right hand muscle weakness - unable to grab and hold Balance and coordination - difficulty walking Reading and writing difficulties Verbal expression/word finding Mood swings Feels like she wants to scream or cry Fears Restless leg Compulsions Left knee joint pain Overeating
What I Did T3-T4 (mood swings, restless leg, sugar cravings, head pain) & T4-P4 (trauma, anxiety, spasticity, high blood pressure, sleep onset, appetite awareness) First session 0.5-0.01 mhz Subsequent sessions continued optimization process - 0.006 mhz Very clear too low - more depressed, more quiet, sleeping too long, unmotivated, less active, less coherent, disoriented Very clear too high more anxious, more agitated, more difficulty falling asleep, more scattered, increased spasticity T3-Fp1 at 0.01 mhz (executive function, focus, memory, compulsions)
Re-assessment at 20 Sessions More alert, more focused. No sugar craving or overeating. More able to cope with fears, no depressed mood, more assertive. Deeper sleep (only disturbed by spasticity), more awake during day. No head pain, no knee pain. Walking better improved coordination and balance. Right side of body less spastic, hand feeling more connected, improved fine motor movement, able to release grip. Reading for longer periods of time, able to maintain focus.
Remaining Concerns Right hand spasticity and weakness. Word finding and articulation. Right visual field deficits hemianopsia.
What I Did Next T3-C3 (session 22) for stronger and more specific effect on right arm/hand motor deficits. T3-P3 (session 25) for reading and writing difficulties. T3-O1 (session 32) for right visual field deficits.
Outcome Motor function and physical deficits: T4-P4 reduced spasticity in both right arm/hand and leg, improved balance and motor coordination, improved motor planning & sequencing, calmed agitation, improved sleep, lowered anxiety, improved appetite regulation T3-C3 reduced muscle weakness, further reduced spasticity, more controlled movement in right hand, index finger moving on command, able to straighten out and lift right arm, able to grab and release Physical therapist expects recovery of right hand motor function, said right hand movement is more supple now. Physiological regulation and mood stability: T3-T4 resolved head and joint pain, resolved sugar cravings, stabilized mood swings, reduced RLS
Outcome Executive function and verbal expression: T3-Fp1 increased alertness, brain fog mostly gone, improved self-control which helped with compulsions, lifted mood, improved focus and attention span, increased coherence in thought process, improved memory, increased speech fluency, improved word finding Reading, writing deficits: T3-P3 increased reading speed and fluency, improvement in fine motor control with handwriting, clearer and faster handwriting. Visual field deficits: T3-O1 ability to distinguish light in right visual field during session
Further To Explore T3-F7 for articulation and word finding. T4-Fp2 for early trauma, fears, self-control. Alpha-theta for resolution of trauma. Currently home trained: 2 x 30 sessions/week - more than 2 sessions/week leads to increase in irritability - less than that leads to increase in spasticity and RLS Comes in periodically allowing frequent re-assessments and implementing changes in her training protocol.
Lessons Learned Importance of taking the time to establish an optimal training frequency with starting sites. Importance of timing and sequence when adding basic and more specific sites.