"Hemiplegic Stroke"

In November 2023, I had a stroke whilst in bed. There was no pain - just the inability to move my right leg. Having rung for the ambulance, during the wait I also lost the use of my right arm.

I was scanned in the early hours of the Saturday morning, the stroke was confirmed and I was admitted to Worcester Royal hospital onto the acute stroke unit. The nurses were keen to get me sitting up and ultimately standing whilst being supported by them both physically and emotionally.

After 5 days I was transferred to Evesham Community Hospital, where the rehab really began. I was initially unsure of the prospect of improvement but thanks to all (and I do mean all...) the physios and support staff I was able to start exercising to regain some use of my right shoulder and leg. It was far from easy and Christmas was a bit of a low point for me. But thanks to the care and support from everyone on the unit I went home in January 2024. 

Thanks to the brilliant team from Bromsgrove in terms of therapy (occupational and physical). I think I've had exceptional care to get me to where I am now. Having referred me to Birmingham University, Amira (the lead physio there) said that I was typical of patients referred to them by the team at Bromsgrove. She thought I was well advanced on my path to recovery and had obviously received a high standard of emotional and physical support. I couldn't agree more!

Reflecting on my experience over the last 2 years I cannot praise the NHS teams enough throughout all stages of my recovery. I've felt fully supported at every step on the way. The physios in particular have gone and above and beyond anything I could have envisaged and I am deeply grateful for all their efforts in getting me this far. I hope I've managed to convey these feelings personally to everyone who has looked after me these last 2 years.