Wish, hope and prayer

All of these can be good for the morale. The reality is however, that all remove responsibility for recovery away from the person. They are dangerous. Reality improves as you invest effort in changing it.

long term deficits

I am 48% blind, and even now there are days in which using my vision makes my head hurt. Do not invest more in hope that these will remit as you do in finding coping mechanisms. I have found the hunt for coping mechanisms is constant, and it is the most beneficial asset in dealing with these permanent handicaps. I spent many years disavowing my disability and it did no good. Playing at having an unaltered reality will not make it so. As with much else after a stroke, do not give up.

poor impulse control and bad judgement

I had this in spades too! I understand it is very common. The fact that I attempted a university education while being half blind, with no short term memory is an indicator of of how profound this effect can be. The fact that I made it through school is due largely to not giving up. I would not be able to say these things from experience if I had not done so, and so not all "bad" decisions are doomed, but the ability to relate actions to a real world environment is part of recovery that needs to be worked on extensively if socially functional rehab is to be achieved. Again, it is not insurmountable, it takes effort and time to achieve. This is another feature where the support one receives determines in large measure the result. Without my family and friends, I would not have made it!

miscommunication (s)

Miscommunication happens. It was an order of magnitude harder for me to formulate a question initially, and asking if I wanted Jello, destroyed the effort. This result in dirty looks and unkind words. I am sorry to everyone that had to endure that. I am also sorry for everyone who cannot say it or does not realize it yet. As the support member, you need to realize that the stroke victims ability to communicate has been compromised, all the way down to the word organization level. Please have some grace in accepting this awkwardness, it will diminish. Even now, I will shoot an unpleasant look sometimes for this reason. Remember it is not like it was, and miscommunication can be no ones fault. It took tremendous effort to learn to communicate effectively, and that would not have happened without those around me excepting my dirty looks with grace and civility.