Thanks Ann. You are so right. I have managed to return to work. I work part time as I could not get past the three day mark in increasing my hours.
I most certainly plough on with rare occasions when I can’t!
It’s reassuring that others are experiencing similar things.
Thanks everyone!
Best wishes
@Loopyj
I still have very bad fatigue at 18 months past stroke, to think you still have it after 5 years is so depressing 
even though we are all different. I was hoping it would ease away.
I had my stroke in October 23. My fatigue kicks in if I do too much at once bit that might only be cutting chicken for ten mins- I’ll have to sit down. I’ve just had a 15 min walk and when I came back, all my upper body muscles were aching and I just had to get on the sofa straight away. Very frustrating.
I’m 3 years on now & I still find the fatigue very frustrating. I can, though, do more before the fatigue hits. It has taken a long time for me but others get there much quicker. Hopefully it’ll get better soon for you.
I’m similar to @Mrs5K with fatigue, I can certainly do a lot more than I did at 2-3 months after my stroke. You’ve got a ways to go yet, a year from now will be a much improved story 
Just be patient with yourself and don’t lose hope, it will get better. The first 6 months can be the hardest on that score, for coming to terms with and acceptance. It’s hard to come to terms with going from you whole life at a 100 miles an hour to suddenly 5 miles an hour, and your stroke brain hasn’t had a chance to process that fully yet, but it will in a little more time.
It will get to that stage of acceptance that you forget to test your limits. One day at the gym doing a circuit class, one of the 1 minute routines was to walk, jog or run a length of the gym for a minute. We are all over 50 in that class, one lady has just turned 90! When it came to my turn to walk I thought I’d try to jog. Well, my stroke brain didn’t quite get the same message, so when I started off to do a leisurely jog, I instantly went into an all out run which shocked me to the point I tripped over my feet and nearly face planted myself into the floor. So yes, I certainly found out I could do it, but I did struggle for a time getting my brain to compute, to remember the difference between a jog and a run…it does know now 
Of course then my brain could recognise the difference between a jug and walk. It did take a few days for the brain to catch up but it knows the all the differences now…it also knows when it doesn’t want jog at all and just leaves me standing there wondering what alternative I can do 
My TIAs were 16 months ago and physically I have been fortunate with only minor residual numbness to remind me of those rather frightening days. What has been more lasting and difficult is the anxiety, fatigue and dizziness.
As I am extremely hopeful of returning to a reasonable senmblence of my pre stroke level of activity and amusements I have devoted myself to devising compensatory strategies to, I suspect, the boredom of my GP.
Replacing clopidgrel with aspirin and statins with a 6 monthly injectable alternative has helped enormously with the dizziness. I reversed a lifelong aversion towards therapists and meditation and embrace them now fully; the subsequent improvement with my anxiety levels has really lifted me as has actually sleeping well most nights. So……… the final frontier - fatigue. I found myself nodding along to all the previous comments on this thread. Yes, we are all different but there’s an awful lot in common with our feelings and emotions on this most frustrating of debilities.
My current efforts are concentrated on establishing my limit in multiple areas - driving, walking, gardening, socialising, gym work, screen time, reading etc. and then just pushing them very gently but hopefully never enough to reduce myself to exhaustion. I agree with all who say that setting targets is great as long as they are general rather than specific.
I send best wishes, encouragement and sympathy to all who are on a similar path.
My main bit of advice is to set SMART targets.
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Timely
Fatigue - does everyone get it?
The answer most definitely is Yes.
I have been following with interest all the posts on this forum and have seen the subject of fatigue come up so often.
I am not a stroke survivor but recently I have been feeling sluggish and forgetful and various other things that are not the “normal/usual me”. i have also been troubled by tingling fingers and plantar fasciitis.
I went to see my GP and after a blood test, my B12 vitamin level has floored down to 134 (compared to usual range of 200 - 900 pg/ml)
In June 2022, the level was 1020 and I was advised to stop taking supplements (vegetarian diet) and last July the level was 226 but not flagged as of concern.
I had wondered why so many stroke survivors suffered from fatigue.
Now I am wondering exactly how much of a stroke survivor fatigue is down to the stroke and how much is the non-stroke.
I expect it is not as simple as B12/folate deficiency for stroke survivors.
Nevertheless, I am surprised I have found myself suffering from fatigue - hopefully once I have been topped up I will start feeling more energetic. I must start having marmite on my toast - I think that is why my B12 dropped - I have stopped having toast for breakfast 
There you go.
Fatigue - does everyone get it?
Yes but I guess the type of fatigue will be different.
Yes, it’s my biggest struggle I would say, over 3 years post stroke. It makes all the other symptoms worse, such as pain, sensory overload and numbness. With me it doesn’t seem related much to activities, it’s actually worse the less I do. If I feel anxious then it’s even heavier.
I think post stroke fatigue is not really understood. They say its your brain healing, but once you are over the acute stage then it should get better. I know our brains have to work much harder now so we get tired quickly, add any stresses or sleep disturbances and you will suffer a lot more. The trick is to find a balance and stick to it, but it is unpredictable and in many people hard to manage completely.
Hi
Had a stroke Feb 2021 & every day I seem to suffer some form of fatigue.
This can be at work where brain fog descends without warning or physical where my body has never truly recovered
But don’t panic - the key is to recognise the triggers & manage workloads/exercise 
Hi @JP1702 - that’s great to know. Thank you so much for caring and for sharing 
I love this piece of advice. It’s so easy to get into panic or agitated mode, but being able to recognise the triggers and then to mange the workload and exercise sounds good to me.
It seems you have learned to do this
If there are any other things you can suggest or recommend based on your personal experiences, please do share with us whenever you have the time
Your knowledge and experience will help those of us who are new to this or playing catch-up.
Take care.
Very interesting to hear about folic acid & B12. I have had an autoimmune condition for nearly 20 years which they think caused a blood clot in my eye December 25. A ‘eye stroke’. Four months on I am suffering the worst and most flooring fatigue I’ve ever felt. I know it is partly the shock that this has happened (I’m 47), the shock I’ve lost half the eyesight in one eye, and the fear of something worse happening, but I am due back at work as a teacher this coming week and will ask at the warfarin clinic tomorrow if this might help. Thank you for posting and I hope you are much better 
I would certainly advise you to get a blood test to see what your nutrient levels are. Low iron, folic acid, B vitamins, minerals, many of them can be at least some of the cause of fatigue.
Because you have a health conditions and probably on medications (some of which can also deplete certain nutrients in the body) I wouldn’t advise you to just start taking over the counter supplements without knowing which your body might actually. That could cause more harm than good.
Explain your symtoms of fatigue your doctor and tell them you want this blood test. You don’t ask them, you tell them, that’s the key 
I’m 5 years post stroke now and yes I still get bouts of fatigue. But they are much fewer or better managed. I know how much I can do in day or a week and I plan as best I can so I don’t get fatigued. But I’m driving, do various fitness classes etc, garden, shopping, trips out and about and can quite independent now. Yes there are still niggles with speech, drop foot and hand tension. But nothing to really hold me back anymore.
Do get your nutrient levels tested asap because going back to teaching is going to be draining. As you must know Lupus SLE also cause severe fatigue and with how it can affect internal organs like the kidneys, it would be wise to check with your doctor first.
I hope all goes well for you returning to work, I take it this will be staggered, you’re not going to try full-time straight off are you 
Lorraine
Advice well worth repeating 
Hopefully, @Beeby31 you have had the chance to read some of the advice on this forum about returning to work. The dos and don’ts. There is some top notch advice from those who have been there and done it and then some
Thank you all so much, you are so kind to take the time to write. I have had blood tests coming out of my ears as am under cardiology, rheumatology and haematology atm. So levels are fine, but I will ask to see my gp again and ask specifically what might need checking. You’re right it’s still early days, I am still cycling a lot, running, walking and feeling good a lot of the time, so just need to be realistic and the whole diagnosis (not complete yet) is a lot to get used to.
I going back half time, maximum 6 x 35minute lessons per day. Will see how it goes. Looking forward to some normality, but will be careful to pace myself. Thank you.
I have it, its not nice, kind of hard to deal with