Reducing spastic muscles

The most common aftereffects of having a stroke from an AVM is always the development of spastic flexion within the muscles that have been affected by the stroke. Though the muscles experience spasticism after the initial stroke, during the moment that the stroke happens the muscles experience a short-term lazy flexion and becomes weak with paralysis. When this happens, one side of the face that is affected by the stroke will droop, the arm will droop as well and would look like rubber, because of this most stroke patients will have difficulty communicating as their facial paralysis would cause them to slur their speech, making pronunciations harder to produce or comprehend. The paralysis will also affect the arms and legs where it is affected by the stroke, as a result, mobility is drastically reduced to almost zero. The hemorrhage in the brain will put pressure on the surrounding brain tissue and depletes them of oxygenated blood. When this happens, our neurons begin dying and the neural receptors aren't able to carry out messages to one another, which causes our muscles to tense up beyond control. To release or reduce the tensions, most doctors would often resort to medication that eases up muscle activity. An example of such medication would be Baclofen, which consists of aminobutyric acid that helps ease up the tension.

However, the use of medications to reduce spastic muscles also has some drawbacks one of which is that it may potentially affect the liver in the long-term as a side effect from prolonged use. So other effective alternatives have to be considered to get rid of the tension. Here are some ways to reduce spastic muscles:

1. Transcutaneous Electrical nerve stimulus: Otherwise known as a TENSE device, this type of equipment is usually used for pain management or reduction and it's no different than the electrical stimulus that's used for acupuncture. To use this device you have to know a bit about the human anatomy, particularly the nerves that control certain movements of the joints. For example, if you want to move your thumb, you have to place it on the radial nerve, located on the back of your hand nearing the thumb and index finger. this controls your thumb and index finger movements. The receptors should also be placed near the elbow as the radial nerve runs all the way from the brain stem, down your spine across the shoulder, through the elbow, and down the forearm before reaching your hand to the index and thumb.
2. Constant use of affected limbs: There's a saying that if you keep working on certain things you'll eventually get better at it and make improvements along the way. The same goes for a weak arm after a stroke. the movements may not be perfect but it's still movable to a functional degree if we keep on using the affected arm for daily activities. Neuroplasticity also plays a role in this. As we constantly use our affected limbs for daily usage, our neurons will get acquainted with the movements and eventually create new connections to the affected side.
3. Visualizing full recovery of the limbs: At times what we believe or perceive about our conditions is what causes or recovery to be stalled or become limited. Sometimes believing that our affected side is healed can help us regain lost connections within the brain. It has already been proven by numerous scientific findings that though the brain may be damaged in certain parts, there are still numerous neurons that can replace these damaged cells and they can actually be motivated by our own thoughts if we focus hard enough. 
4. Being aware of emotions: The way we feel can actually have an effect on our muscles after suffering a stroke. Not many people are aware of this as this is often overlooked by most doctors and physiotherapists. You'll notice that if you get angry or anxious about something, your muscles will tend to tense up. This is because the parts of our brain that control our motor skills are located near to the part that controls emotion. 
5. Infra-red therapy: Surrounding temperature has an effect on our muscle contraction. you'll notice that when it's cold, our muscles will tend to feel stiff as this is an involuntary response that our body has to prevent heat loss. An infra-red therapy helps loosen up the muscles by using heat to turn off this involuntary response. However, using this therapy should be done with caution as prolonged use of infra-red therapy an cause minor burns on the surface of the skin

Though the list of methods above mention some of the potential ways that we could alleviate tensions within the muscles after a stroke. it doesn't mean that we should be solely focusing on them for a permanent solution. we should strive on making our progress in our physiotherapy better in each and every session as the improvements will help create better movements to compensate the ones that are lost after the initial stroke.