The Golden Hour of Stroke that Determines the Quality of Remaining Life

While practicing Chinese medicine in Canada, I frequently encounter heartbreaking cases—not just occasionally. It makes me question whether the years of rigorous study and training were truly meant for such outcomes. The time, effort, and money invested feel wasted.

Tragic Case 1:

A man in his 70s, married to a retired nurse, felt his body leaning to one side while walking. He told his family doctor, but instead of immediate emergency care, he was scheduled for routine tests. Days later, while driving, he again felt his steering veer and went to the ER—only to be told nothing was wrong according to the examination. After a few more similar episodes, he made another ER visit but received the same response - No problem! Shortly after the visit, he collapsed from a stroke. Despite hospitalization and months of rehab, he was left with lasting impairments and came alone for acupuncture and herbal treatment—his nurse wife was unwilling to support Eastern medicine.

Tragic Case 2:

An early-80s retired nurse visited with a friend whose knee pain was improving through acupuncture. She complained of knee pain, frequent urination, and a runny nose. Though she didn’t mention it before the inquiry, it was visible that she had a head tremor (turns out it was decade-long). After four treatments, her symptoms improved. Despite recommendations for weekly care, she returned only sporadically. Months later, her friend reported she had suffered a stroke and was being transferred to a rehab hospital. The friend also requested a home visit for their treatment.

Tragic Case 3:

A woman in her early 70s was referred to by her friend. She felt weakness in her limbs and dizziness one morning, with her body leaning towards the right. She delayed seeking care because she expected the wait time at the hospital would be long. Instead, she hoped that a rest would help. Four days later, her right leg gave out upon stepping off the bed (described by the patient as if they were stepping on clouds, which made it difficult for them to stand up straight), and her right arm also felt numb and stiff. She went to the ER, and after describing the situation to the staff and a quick vital check, she waited over 8 hours for an MRI, feeling increasingly stuffy in the chest, nauseous, throbbing in the head, and dizzy. Without any sort of emergency treatment or action for 8 hours, she was diagnosed with a “minor stroke” and began rehab. However, she felt uncared for and distrust of Western emergency care, so she came for oriental medicine treatment 10 days later, seeking help for lingering symptoms and prevention of a recurrence.

✅ A Case of Prevention:

One Sunday morning, a woman urgently called for help: her husband was dizzy, breaking out in cold sweats, sweating, and his toes were twisting. She said she was referred to my clinic instead of the ER by her acquaintance. Thirty minutes later, she arrived with her husband, a large man in his late 50s with hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, and mild obesity (he liked ice cream and he often over-ate late at night after he closed his restaurant). After emergency acupuncture, bloodletting, and cupping to open and circulate blocked Qi and Blood as well as to stabilize his blood pressure, his symptoms eased dramatically. He continued regular treatment for two years even after that, which improved his chronic conditions of hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. All of these were treated at the same time because oriental medicine is characterized by holistic treatment. He now enjoys a better quality of life.

The Reality of Stroke Care:

There are far more tragic cases than fortunate ones. Even when stroke symptoms are clear, patients are sent to the ER, where they do not receive further measures until test results come out. What would have been best is continuous oriental medical emergency care to halt further progression. Even after diagnosis, collaborative care between Eastern and Western medicine should be done to minimize the sequelae. However, this is rare or non-existent in reality due to Western medicine’s indifference, disregard, and ignorance of Eastern approaches. This neglect creates a high hurdle for Eastern practitioners trying to help. Ultimately, patients are the ones who suffer the consequences of a worse prognosis, and the resulting medical costs become the burden of taxpayers.

🚨Recognizing Stroke Symptoms Early:

• Frequent dizziness, headaches, nausea

• Feeling like floating when getting out of bed

• Weak or trembling limbs, twisted toes/fingers

• Leaning/heeling over to one side while walking or driving

• Slurred speech, stiff tongue

Waiting over 6 hours in the ER for tests and their results often means missing the golden hour, causing further progression of stroke and worsening the outcomes. If symptoms described by the patients are taken seriously and prompt emergency care is provided while they continue to search for the stroke location and monitor the progression of the stroke, patients can recover without lasting damage. But when treatment only begins after collapse or when patients arrive by ambulance, even life-saving surgery can’t undo the missed opportunity—leaving patients with lifelong complications.

Final Thoughts:

No properly trained doctor lacks passion for healing. But we must open our eyes and hearts to what truly benefits patients. We hope for wise judgment and open-minded choices for the sake of better lives.