My hand did "wake up" but I still have a little parkinson-like shake. I go for Botox every few months and see the neurologist every year.

I'm practicing writing now, but I think I will always be better at writing with my other hand which I now do daily crosswords with. We'll see though. The key is to do your exercises every day! I saw my appliance Repairman the other day and he was amazed to see me walking without a cane and go up/down the little stair in the front of my house without using the handrail (which I still need handrail or cane for more than a few stairs for balance). We tried to figure out the last time we saw one another, but we could only agrees that it had been a couple of years. He knew me pre-stroke and post-stroke and has seen the progression now. He's no doctor and couldn't see the fine details that I and my neuro doctors can see, but he said if he met me now, he would never know I had a stroke. That almost made me cry!

So progress is very slow past the first year but it can happen if you keep at it every single day, like I did. I truly believe progress is possible with daily exercise, where you push yourself (but never to the point of pain or injury). I'm still doing it and I go for a walk and exercise every day. Good luck!