Neglect is more than not being able to use the recovering side. Think of it as a lack of awareness of that side.HomeAboutStrokeEffectsofStrokePhysicalEffectsofStrokePhysicalImpactOne-SidedNeglectSearchHaveyouseenyourstrokesurvivorleavefoodonhalfoftheirplate?Forgettoputtheirrecoveringarmintoashirtsleeve?Notturntheirheadinyourdirectionwhenyouspeak?Thisisone-sideneglect,anditcanbeveryfrustrating.Neglectismorethannotbeingabletousetherecoveringside.Thinkofitasalackofawarenessofthatside.Thiscommonstrokeeffectcanreducethepossibilityofindependentlivingandincreasethepotentialforpainfulinjury.Familymembersandcaregiverscanhelpsurvivorsincrementallyovercomeweak-sideneglect.Herearesometipstogetstarted:Approachtheneglectedside.Placeacomfortablechairnexttothebedontheneglectedside.Thisencouragesthestrokesurvivortolookinyourdirectionasyouspeak.Holdthesurvivor’shandandmakecontacttohelpincreaseawarenessofthatside.Ifheorshehasdifficultyturningtheirheadinyourdirection,gentlyplaceyourhandontheirchinandslowlyhelpthemturntheirheadtowardyou(farenoughfortheireyestomeetyours).Atfirst,youmayneedtodothisseveraltimesadayuntiltheycandoitontheirown.Placethenightstandontheneglectedside.Placingthephone,TVremote,glassofwaterorothernecessitiesonthe neglectedsideencouragesmovement.Onenoteofcaution:Don’tplacethecontrolforcallingthenurseontheneglectedside.Itshouldalwaysbeonthestrongsidewhereitcanbefoundquickly.Includetheneglectedhandduringdailytasks.Asyourstrokesurvivorimproves,youmaynoticethattheyarestillunawareofobjectsononeside.Sayingthingslike“Whatdidyouforget?”or“Looktoyourleft”aren’tveryhelpful.Instead,usegentlereminderssuchas“Hereisyourfork”andguidetheirhand.Aninterestingphenomenonoccurswhenyoutakesomeone’shand—theirheadautomaticallyturnsinthatdirectionandtheireyesfollow.Byfirstsaying“Let'sgetyourfork”andthentakingtheirhandinyoursto“search”forthefork,you’vecombinedthesenseofhearingwiththesenseoftouch.Improveawareness.Whateverthereasonforlackofawarenessofoneside,everyonefromfamilymemberstocaregiver