I’m new here and thought it was time to say hello. I had a haemorrhagic stroke - caused by high blood pressureback in March, and I’ve spent most of the rest of the year in hospital getting through the acute phase and the long, sometimes frustrating business of recovery. I’m 42 (41 at the time of my stroke)and live in Salford, Greater Manchester.
It’s taken me a while to feel ready to engage with others about what happened. Like many of you, I suspect, I’ve had moments of shock, confusion, progress, setbacks, and a lot of thinking time. Now that I’m in a more stable place, I feel ready to connect with people who truly understand what this experience is like in ways friends and family, however supportive, sometimes can’t.
I was genuinely living my best life and this stroke really has robbed so much from me, my home, my independence, my dignity, use of my left arm, my ability to walk (although I cannot thank enoughthe staff of the NHS ( particularly the stroke rehab unit at Salford royal) and the intermediate neuro unit at Trafford General where I was discharged from last monthand the superb physios at the brain and spinal injury centre in salford (B.A.S.I.Cs)
Hello and welcome to the group. I spent quite a lot of time working out how to write in. I hope you will soon feel you can engage with the group. You will find fellow travellers when you feel ready.
Welcome! Sorry to hear about your stroke and at such a young age too. My husband had the same type of stroke Nov 24 and to be honest we are both still coming to terms with it. His was also caused by very high blood pressure.
He was very active, horse riding, motorbike riding, still working, walking miles etc and now all he can do is watch TV! He cannot use his dominant right hand at all and his right leg is badly affected. There are lots of other problems but I won’t bore you.
Are there any stroke groups near you? My husband goes to a gym once a week to try and keep mobile. I wish there was more support for people who have had major strokes but we hear nothing anymore and feel abandoned. I hope you are still getting physio.
It is entirely your choice how much or little you post on here and there will be others who you can connect with and who can relate to you and your story.
In reading your post it seems to me you are doing really well in coming to terms with life after stroke which is very pleasing as it makes it so much easier to try and lead as good a life as you can.
Welcome to the community, I’m sorry to hear about your stroke and the difficulties you’ve had to face this past year.
As others have said this community is here for you to use as little or as much as you would like. There is a wealth of knowledge here from people who have been through similar, should you need it.
Wishing you well with your continued recovery. If you need any thing whilst you’re using the Online Community, please don’t hesitate to tag me using the @ symbol and my username.
Well done Llionionx for engaging with us all here - your presence is appreciated we all help and enhance each other’s knowledge amd your post is a big part of that now.
It’s important you mention the psychological impact i dont think this is discussed enough. It’s an understatement to say it’s been a shock i think it goes deeper than that but the shock and fear does ease and personally ive been very grateful for the words and wisdom of others on this group. It’s an area I’d like to start a new thread on but I need to think about it first - please anyone wants to kick it off please do I’ll take forever!
Please continue to engage as and when u can. And welcome to the community.
@Lionzionx hi & welcome to the community. Sorry you’ve had cause to join us but hopefully you’ll find it a useful place to be. We are quite a friendly bunch who have all been where you are.
Every feeling you describe is relatively common place after a stroke. I was slightly older than you (still in my 40s) when I had my stroke & to say it was a shock would be an understatement.
Your life will start to return to more “normality” in time. Stroke recovery is a long road but one worth travelling.
Hi @Lionzionx sorry to hear of your stroke at such a young age. I can see you have already received a good response to your first post so I won’t repeat everything but just wanted to jump on and welcome.
I also suffered a hemorrhagic stroke 8 years ago (aged 57), also caused by high blood pressure that I didn’t know I had. My stroke paralysed my left side and at the time I thought my life was over and although my life is very different, it is still good. We regularly eat out and socialise with friends and family and have travelled to Spain on a number of occasions. I walk with a stick outdoors and can potter about with no stick at home.
If I had known how much I would achieve, things would have been very different in the early days.
I just wanted to say don’t lose hope and never give up.
Hi I’m happy to share my experience and hope that it will give hope to anyone just starting their road to recovery.
Following my stroke 8 years ago I was convinced that I would never be able to walk well enough to get about so we started doing our food shopping daily and used our local Tesco Superstore as the basis of my physiotherapy. As my walking improved I slowly gained the confidence to ditch the wheelchair and I am proud to say that I rarely use it now. I walk with a stick outdoors but potter about at home unaided. Weather permitting I also walk along our road until I feel I’ve had enough and then turn around and walk back home (about 20 mins).
Initially I worried that my husband would never be able to leave me alone and get back to work but I’m pleased to say that he now works 3 days a week and I’m happy to potter around, making myself cups of tea . We both feel that having sometime apart is beneficial to both of us. My husband sometimes has a day out playing golf with friends and enjoys a pint and a catch up regularly.
I thought I would never be able to go out with friends but now do so on a regular basis and I have been blessed with having amazing friends who always include me.
Before my stroke we went abroad at least 4 times a year and I was convinced that we would never be able to do that again and I am pleased to say that we have managed this once a year. We have already booked to go to Spain with our grown up kids and our grandchildren in June 2026.
I hope this is helpful to anyone who is just starting their road to recovery. Keep on Keeping On everyone, with determination and hard work you will be surprised at what you can achieve .
I’m nowhere near back to normal, I still can’t use my left arm and hand but I will never give up trying to improve myself.
Thank you for this Sue. I think it is really good to know what is possible and what you can achieve if you are able to put in the effort and receive the right level of support.
I like that there are so many “I never thought I would be able to …” which have been overcome and you are able to lead as good a life as possible and enjoy family activities with your chillen and grand-chillen.
Have a great holiday in Spain with your family and have a wonderful new year with more "I never thought I would be able to … " ticked off
Sorry to hear of your stroke, it does just jumble up life and is very very weird. Hopefully you’ll get more control back to live your life. We’re all different, some have MASSIVE improvements, but are still in a bad way (compared to others, and that’s not saying others have it easy!).
I, myself, had a stroke aged 29. I’m ok, in essence, I can walk and talk…but I’m not “right”, I’ve got massive memory issues and such, but I look fine which is impossibly annoying as I’m essentially brushed off when I ask for help. Ah well.
We’ll all work through it, and you will too. You’ll not be the same as you were, but this new you is still as fab as the other one. It’ll probably be frustrating learning about the new you, but it’s not so much that you are new, just how you see yourself. Never really considered looking at myself, not properly. It’s a bit creepy - hehe - but in a oddly fun way.
Evening. Sorry to hear what has happened to you. Sounds, difficult as it can be, that you are determined to get back as far as possible to where you were before.
I had a brain haemorrhage and stroke 25 years ago and was on the way out. I was aged 46 at the time and with a young family. I was left physically disabled, but fortunately not cognitively impaired, allowing me to get the qualifications for what I do now.
I still work full time and will keep going as long as I can.
Keep looking ahead not back. You can’t change what has happened.
I had hemorhagic stroke in 2022. What can I say ? 1 step forward, twenty back. Swings and roundabouts, ups and downs. Just persevere. Swim through the mud every day . I workout now five days per week. Light weights, yoga, t’ai chi, neurology exercises- acupressure- it’s all I can do to fit it all in. I shop, cook, garden. All of it. Don’t let Nothing hold me back except stroke sickness or injury. Have nearly cut off every finger on the left hand , couldn’t drive for a year because the Whole left side was like a blank canvas. Still walk like a drunk with wooden leg. Just soldier on
. We both feel that having sometime apart is beneficial to both of us. My husband sometimes has a day out playing golf with friends and enjoys a pint and a catch up regularly.
