It’s been two years since pop star Michael Hartl suffered a stroke in the middle of the night. “Until recently I didn’t know what happened that morning in our house near Munich. The days after that were also gone. The whole thing was erased from my mind,” he reports to “ Bild.de .”
“Now the memory returns. How I gasp for air, reach for the water bottle on the bed – and it falls out of my hand.
Stroke is one of the most common causes of death in Germany
Michael suffered a stroke. He is one of around 270,000 people in Germany every year. The term stroke describes a “sudden” loss of brain functions, explains the Robert Koch Institute (RKI).
Stroke is one of them Generic term for acute damage to areas of the brain that either
as a result of a vascular occlusion (cerebral infarction, ischemic infarction) or due to a cerebral hemorrhage (hemorrhagic infarction)
arises.
Certain areas of the brain are no longer adequately supplied with oxygen and nutrients. They can no longer work properly and are in danger of dying. “Stroke, along with heart disease and cancer, is one of the most common causes of death in Germany and the most common cause of permanent disability in adults,” the RKI continues.
Wife Marianne acted immediately and wisely – certainty with the FAST test
When a stroke occurs, every minute counts. Michael’s wife Marianne, also a pop singer, reacted immediately and with presence of mind. “We had already dealt with the topic of stroke. How do you determine that? Raise your arm, smile, stick out your tongue. Michi tried, but couldn’t,” she tells “Bild.de”.
Typical symptoms include sudden, severe headaches, dizziness and symptoms of paralysis. Vision and speech are also often impaired.
These can be done with the help of the so-called FAST-Tests check, which even laypeople can use to quickly identify whether it is a stroke. Stroke Help explains it as follows:
Face: Ask the person to smile. If one corner of the mouth hangs down, this indicates hemiplegia.
Arms (Arme): Ask the person to stretch their arms forward while turning their palms up. When paralyzed, both arms cannot be raised and one arm sinks or rotates.
Speech: Have the person repeat a simple sentence. If she is unable to do this or her voice sounds slurred, there is probably a speech disorder.
Time: Don’t hesitate, call 112 immediately and describe the symptoms.
The pop singer reacted perfectly. The emergency doctor she called took her husband to a clinic. He was taken to the intensive care unit. The blood clot that was blocking a vessel in the brain had to be removed by surgery. The pop star was then in an artificial coma for four days. He first had to learn to speak and walk again, and the right side of his body was also affected. There was also vocal cord paralysis.
Prevent stroke – there are also preventable risk factors
Today he is fine again. The couple is currently on a big farewell tour. Due to high demand, it was even extended.
As Marianne Hartl says, the two have also changed their lifestyle. “We hardly eat any sugar anymore, less salt, I season with lemon juice, for example.” And further: “Michael avoids cold cuts. There are lots of vegetables, fish, and sometimes organic chicken. We move a lot. Michael takes a nap every day and is now starting golf again.”
The pop stars are doing it right. There are risk factors for stroke that cannot be influenced. These include age and genetics.
But there are also avoidable risk factors, including:
Obesity, lack of exercise, smoking and alcohol consumption.
Michael Hartl celebrates his 75th birthday on Sunday. Is he afraid that it will happen to him again? “The [Angst] “It’s always there, I listen to myself a lot,” he says. “The fact that I now remember the horror day is a good thing because it shows that I am becoming more and more healthy.”