How to Spot the Signs of a Stroke and How to Take Action

Added: 2026-05-30

[00:00:00]So, May is [music] National Stroke Awareness Month. According to the American Heart Association, every year about 800,000 people in the United States experience a stroke.

[00:00:10]>> So, this morning on today's checklist, we are highlighting how to recognize the symptoms and to take action.

[00:00:15]>> Here to help us is Dr. Carolyn Brockington. She's a vascular neurologist and director of the Stroke Center at Mount Sinai West and Morningside here in New York City.

[00:00:25]Doctor, so nice to have you here.

[00:00:27]>> Welcome back.

[00:00:27]>> Thank you for having me back.

[00:00:28]>> I I think a lot of people might think that strokes are primarily, you know, associated with older folks, but it's not.

[00:00:35]>> That's one of the biggest myths, right?

[00:00:37]People think, "Oh, I'm young. I don't have to worry about it, etc." Absolutely not true. Anybody can have a stroke, right? The incidence certainly increases as people get older, but strokes are from not enough blood getting to the brain, and there are many different reasons why that might happen at different ages. So, everybody should know they can have a stroke.

[00:00:53]>> Everybody.

[00:00:54]>> Everybody.

[00:00:54]>> So, let let's talk about this acronym.

[00:00:56]It's called B FAST. B FAST. Explain that to us. Break it down.

[00:01:01]>> Cuz we say in stroke treatment, time is brain, right? If stroke means not enough blood is getting to the brain causing an injury, we want to re-establish blood flow right away. So, we want people to know, what are the most common signs or stroke symptoms that they might see. So, B FAST, right? B is for balance.

[00:01:18]Suddenly, you feel like you're off balance.

[00:01:20]E is for eyes. You don't see well. Both eyes are darkened or you have double vision. F is for face, right? Suddenly, you notice that your face is drooping on one side. A is for arms. You can't keep one arm up. Uh S is for speech. Maybe your speech is garbled or suddenly you can't find the words you want or you don't understand what people are saying to you. And then T is for time. We want people to call 911 right away. You don't Google. You don't call a friend, right?

[00:01:45]You go to the emergency room right away.

[00:01:47]>> And to [clears throat] be clear though, it's not you don't necessarily need to have all of these symptoms.

[00:01:51]>> Absolutely not. These are just most of the common symptoms, right? And so, we want people to really acknowledge and understand that the symptoms are sudden and they may be this, but if suddenly you feel like something's wrong on one side of the body or you can't see or speak, that's something that has to be evaluated right away.

[00:02:07]>> Is it possible to have a stroke without any symptoms?

[00:02:10]>> I'd say, you know, people say, "Oh, I have a stroke, I'm definitely going to know it, right?" But there are such things as silent strokes. It depends on the part of the brain that's affected, the size. And you might say, "Well, how do we detect it?" When people get pictures of their brain for other reasons, a headache, etc., you might say, "Oh, they had a stroke before." And you might say, "Well, since I don't have any symptoms, I don't have to worry."

[00:02:29]But it really serves as a warning sign, right? One of the risk factors. So, you want to make sure Well, why'd you have a stroke? You have to treat it like having high blood pressure, having diabetes, etc. Because we know that somebody who has a silent stroke, the risk of getting another stroke that actually has symptoms is greater. Also, the risk of memory problems developing is greater.

[00:02:48]>> So, [clears throat] Dr. what can folks do to reduce their risk?

[00:02:51]>> Right. So, it's important that we say 80% of strokes can be prevented. Right.

[00:02:55]So, we've talked about stroke, but we should know that we can empower ourselves to do something about it. So, that's knowing your numbers, right? So, if you have high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, you've probably heard in the news that there are new cholesterol medicines coming out that are going to really reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. Reduce stress, right? That's easy to say, but I try to unplug every day so I'm not constantly on the phone. Uh get regular activity, healthy diet, right?

[00:03:20]>> Sleep. Sleep.

[00:03:23]>> [laughter] >> Easier to say than done, right? Limit your alcohol.

[00:03:27]Um but all those things seem like small little things, but really all those add up to certainly preventing stroke and having a healthy life, right? Both of brain health and overall body health.

[00:03:37]So, it's important.

[00:03:38]>> And it's good to feel empowered like you can actually do something about it.

[00:03:41]>> Absolutely, yeah.

[00:03:42]>> Uh Dr., thank you. I appreciate your time.

[00:03:44]>> Thank you, Dr. Barkan, too.

[00:03:45]>> Hey, thanks for watching. And don't forget you can catch the Today show every morning on NBC or take today when you're on the go. Just follow the Today podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.