The 12-year study out of Australia looked at 10,547 women between the ages of 47 and 52 who were part of a longitudinal study that asked patients about their mental and physical health every three years during a period between 1992 and 2010.
The study found that women with depression had a 2.4 times higher chance of having a stroke than those who were not depressed. After removing other factors such as smoking, being overweight and having diabetes, women with depression were still 1.9 times more likely to have a stroke.
Here’s the CBS story.
A stroke can have a lasting impact on the victim’s ability to stay at home and may leave the individual unable to handle his or her finances or other legal responsibilities. A major stroke often results in requiring long term care. That care can exceed $100,000 a year if the victim requires skilled nursing care. Many people mistakenly believe that Medicare will foot the bill for such costs but Medicare will only pay for medically necessary costs and is limited to no more than 100 days with a lot of exceptions that may still involve the victim footing the bill for substantial amounts of his or her care. A LifePlan can help victims after a stroke with crisis planning but to best protect your assets, help you avoid becoming a burden on your loved ones and if possible prevent you from needing a nursing home in the first place by helping you to access community resources contact an elder law attorney to help you create a LifePlan before the crisis. To find out more about LifePlanning, attend a free seminar.
